The Aegis Of Fairy Tail
by BANIX
Summary: I cannot remember much of who I was, what I did, and where I lived. But I loved who I am now, what I am doing, and where I am currently staying. Fairy Tail is my new home and I loved it. Being an S Class mage is just another bonus. Reincarnated OC (Rated M just in case, but it should be more on the T rating scale)
1. Chapter 1- A World of Magic

_Where...Where am I? Who am I? Why can't I remember..._

"Hey, there's still a kid alive here. Wasn't he supposed to be dead?"

"Just kill him and get going already. We already got the loot. The boss will kill _us_ if we're late."

"Yea, yea... gimme a moment. Hey kid, stop squirming around already. Let's not make this even more painful than it already is, eh?"

 _Huh? Kid? me?_

I sat up and looked at my hands, they are indeed a lot smaller than what I was used to from what little I can remember. What was I doing before this anyway? How did I landed here.. _ **URGH!**_

Memories flashed for an instant as I recalled a little of who I was. I definitely wasn't born in this world, and...

Crap. I died, didn't I? Did I just reincarnated? And I'm about to die, _again_?

One of the thugs walked closer to me as he raised a machete high into the air with his arm. I retreated as far as I could and soon found my back pressed against the wall of the building I found myself in.

"Alrighty, hold still there, this will be over in 3, 2, 1..."

 _DON'T COME NEAR ME!_

I closed my eyes as I held my hands out in an attempt to push, block, or do whatever I can in this new and tiny body to prevent that thug from hacking me into little bloody pieces.

That blow never came.

I slowly opened my eyes and saw a translucent barrier formed around me. _Holy! What was that?! Did I do that?_

"Damn! This kid has magic? Hurry up Joe, kill him!"

"I'm on it! But I can't seem to get through this barrier!"

While the thugs were talking, I felt a physical strain trying to maintain the barrier that I had accidentally erected. There's a weird feeling buzzing throughout my new body and I guessed that this was the magic the thugs were talking about. So I had reincarnated into a world of magic? Interesting as it is, the first course of action now will be to survive. Maintaining the barrier based on my newfound magic powers is draining and I am getting more tired every second. The fact that more of these thugs were hacking at my shield doesn't help my situation at all.

Please, someone, _HELP_!

 **"DON'T YOU DARE TOUCH THE CHILD!"**

With a loud boom, a large fist crashed into the thugs that were trying to kill me and knocked them unconscious. The fist slowly shrank in size and I saw who it belonged to. My saviour was a small, balding old man with a thick white mustache. He walked up to me and looked over me with a critical eye. My first impression of him is that he's really short, even from where I was sitting on the floor. I'm pretty sure that my new body is taller than him. He also gave off an aura of comfort, and since I was just informed that magic exists in this world, I guessed that the aura was some sort of magical signature. I cannot explain it. It's like having a sixth sense out of the existing five senses. I don't know how to use it or explain it, but I instinctively knew that what I felt from the old man was magic. His magic was vast, no matter how much I tried to peer into him I cannot measure how large it truly is. I don't think he meant me any harm from what he just did, but I can't shake off the feeling that I had saw this old man somewhere before.

The old man helped me up and dusted the dirt off my clothes while I just stared at him in silence. My mind was still reeling in from all the shock.

"Don't worry about these bandits, they won't be getting up anytime soon." He gave a large grin as he held out a hand to me. "My name is Makarov Dreyar, what's your name?"

Holy shit! I'm in the world of _Fairy Tail_?!

* * *

"You wanna go at it, ice princess?!"

"You want some of me, lizard-brain?!"

"Grrrr, come at me you stripper!"

There they go again. One guess as to who's arguing with who.

Eight years. It has been eight years since I had joined Fairy Tail.

The memories of this body that I now inhabit slowly fused with the memories I had of my previous life within my first week of waking up in this world. In this world, the owner of the body is called Elden Tyrell. He used to have loving parents that were killed in a bandit raid, which occurred just as when I first woke up in this new world in the year X770. By all rights, this body should have died from a direct blast of magic from one of the bandits' magic tool. I think that the entry of my soul (if I guessed correctly) into this body had somehow revived it and took over control of it. No matter how I tried, I cannot feel the existence of another being coexisting with me in this body, so if there was a concept of soul in this world, the original soul that possessed this body is long gone. I feigned amnesia when I first met Makarov, claiming that I couldn't remember anything due to the head injury I had. It was only after the first week I spent with him that I slowly told him the bits and pieces of what I could remember about the life this body had before I took over it. Seeing that my only known family members in this world were dead and that I had nowhere else to go, I accepted Makarov's offer to join Fairy Tail. He was on the way back to Fairy Tail from the annual meeting between guild masters when he passed by the town where this body used to live. I would have died a second time if he didn't passed by the area when he did.

After assuming my new identity in this world, I spent an entire day by the graves of my parents in this world. Makarov had kindly arranged a funeral for them. I was still trying to figure out how I took over the body of their dead son. It was not my fault, but I am not going to feel guilty about it. I was lucky to have a second chance in life and I am going to live it to the fullest however I liked it. Still, they were still my parents in this world and I felt like I had an obligation to pay my respects to them and their dead child.

I hoped they found peace in wherever their souls rest now.

The appearance I took on in this world is unassuming. I look ordinary. I have hair as black as the night and my eyes had the same colour as my hair. I don't look ugly, but there weren't any notable features as well except for the colour of my hair. I soon found out that my age fell into the age range of the main cast of Fairy Tail as I was born in the year X763, if the memories of this body serves me right, which means my age now should be 15 years old. Surprisingly, I was one of the earliest members among the main cast to join, only right after Laxus.

Talking about that guy is opening another whole new can of worms.

When I first met Laxus, I decided to put aside my initial impression of him based from my prior knowledge and found that he was actually a nice guy to spend time with. We were the only kids around our age when I first joined and we often spent time together. Outside of training and missions, we will spent time together in silent company. He will listen to his music with his headphones and I will read my books to pass the time. We also studied and trained in magic together. We read any and every book we can get our hands on regarding magic. Through that, we learnt a bit of many different types of magic even though we never specialised in them, only training ourselves diligently in the branch of magic that we were born with. _We_ formed the Thunder God Tribe (yea, surprised me too), and recruited Freed, Evergreen, and Bickslow, who we helped rescue from a bunch of slave traders during one of our missions near the borders between Fiore and Bosco. I realised that this was probably the reason why the three of them showed such undying loyalty to Laxus in canon. He saved them from a life of misery.

All went well, and the five of us were the strongest group in Fairy Tail. We were happy. To add on, Laxus and I made a good duo and there weren't many that can stand up to our combined might. We were best friends, even though we spent most of our time in the guild in silence rather than talking.

Until Ivan did something that forced Makarov to excommunicate him from the guild. Laxus changed after that, and became the power-hungry man like how he was initially depicted in the manga. No matter what I tried, I couldn't get my best friend in this world back. Our relationship soured due to our difference in ideals.

I left the Thunder God Tribe shortly after. I couldn't stand seeing Laxus like this, and he couldn't understand why I kept stopping him from doing what he did. He just wouldn't listen to me. I couldn't get him away from his path of self-destruction.

Natsu will accomplish what I failed to do in the future, so I will leave it up to him. Until then, I will wait.

No one other than Makarov knew exactly what Ivan did although I have a little inkling on what it was about. There's a lot about my past life that I couldn't remember, but I remembered enough about the Fairy Tail series. I had finished the manga, but my memory was only good enough until the Grand Magic Games arc, anything after that is a messy blur. There were still some empty spots about the arcs I did remember about the Fairy Tail series, but I have a vague idea on what I could possibly expect from in the future.

So many things to prepare for, so many events to prevent, and so little time to do it.

Over the years, I had truly come to love Fairy Tail as my own family. It's hard not to. Fairy Tail is more than the main cast you see in the manga or anime. There are many other members that wasn't shown or portrayed. In Fairy Tail, with the exception of Ivan and maybe Precht, these people here truly love and accept you for what you are. They treated you as their own.

We are nakama.

It didn't take me long to decide to help them in their future wars/troubles/shenanigans as much as I could. I would have been dead or crazy if it wasn't for them. It was not easy trying to adjust to the fact that I had been thrown into a fictitious world where magic is real. It was not easy trying to pretend you are a kid when you were an adult. It was not easy trying to act like you don't know things that you know, but were not supposed to know.

Fairy Tail kept me sane, and I loved them for it in spite of all the weird shenanigans that went on around the guild on a daily basis.

Despite my love for my guild, there are things that I rather not deal with, like the squabbles between Gray and Natsu. I wish Master was here, he's away for another annual meeting between the guild masters. I hope the guild doesn't crumble before he returns.

 _Thunk!_

The sound of fists hitting heads reached my ears. Thank you, Erza, you are a life-saver.

"Were you guys misbehaving?"

"N-No. Natsu and I were just practising our magic with each o-other. R-Right Natsu?"

"A-Aye."

"Good. I know friends do butt heads with each other once in a while, but try to keep it down in the guild hall. Understood?"

"YES!"

I could memorise by now what they were going to say the moment Erza set them straight. They always use the same excuse. Erza probably had both her eyes covered regarding this issue as long as they stop fighting. No way is she that stupid.

"Hey tin-can! Stop using your fists to settle everything!" There was a short pause and I used my imagination to fill in the blanks on what is happening on the ground floor below. "What are you looking at me for? Can't use your brain for once? Is it filled with rust?"

Please, Mira, don't start another guild brawl. We barely prevented one from happening. _LET ME READ MY BOOK IN PEACE!_

"What did you say, you _whore_?!"

"See what I mean, _scrap metal_? You just use your fists to threaten everyone and everything the moment you lose your-"

 _WHACK!_

Damn it, Erza.

"THIS SETTLES IT! YOU AND ME, RIGHT NOW!"

"COME ON! YOU SKIMPY LITTLE SHIT!"

I groaned from my spot on the reclining wooden chair that I was sitting on the second floor. All I wanted was to read my book in peace, was that so hard to ask for?

I left my seat and took a peek down towards the first floor where the fight was taking place. Already, a guild brawl had started. Mira and Erza were duking it out in the middle of the guild hall leaving a pile of unconscious guild members in their wake who were too slow in getting out of their way. Natsu and Gray had taken the chance to settle their earlier dispute. Jet and Droy were fighting for reasons unknown again, probably trying to win Levy's heart. Macao and Wakaba started another fist fight at another corner. Many other members of the guild were starting brawls of their own in their own corners.

I ran a hand through my hair and sighed. It's better to just get it over and done with. I raised my hands parallel to the ground as I summoned my magic.

"Barrier-Make: Rectangles."

Numerous rectangular translucent barriers the size of doors fell onto the fighting members of the guild and pressed them flat onto the floor below, one rectangle block of barrier for each of them. Thanks to the barriers pressing down hard on them, nobody can move from their position where they are squished onto the ground. My barriers are nigh unbreakable for most of them.

"I'm trying to read my book in peace. _Anyone_ who disturbs me again will face _severe_ punishment, am I **_understood_**?"

The members of the guild nodded in fear as I purposefully leaked out some of the pressure from my magic reserves. Doing so never failed to solidify the point I'm trying to bring across to the rowdy members of the guild.

"Good."

With that, I dispersed the barriers. I turned around to return to my seat to continue reading from where I had left off. Where was I again?

"El, fight me!"

I glanced back and I saw Natsu sprang up to my location from the ground floor and tried to punch me with a flaming fist. I simply flicked my fingers and sent him flying with a transparent barrier that crashed into him and rammed him through the opened windows of the guild towards the back of the building. I don't care where he ended up in. He will survive anyway. This guy's tougher than a cockroach.

"Was my speech _clear_ enough for all of you? Or do you guys need another **_demonstration_**?"

The members on the first floor scurried away in fear at my words as I went back to continue reading my book.

Ah, the comfortable silence that can only be achieved with power.

It feels good to be an S Class mage of Fairy Tail.

* * *

 _How?! How did this lazy excuse of a man fought off her attacks without seemingly any effort?!_

"Are you even trying? I'm getting bored here. If you are not serious in becoming S Class then just forfeit. Stop wasting my time."

Erza watched in frustration as Elden yawned. They had been fighting for five minutes and Elden looked totally relaxed and not a single hair out of place. She, on the other hand, is getting tired from the amount of attacks she has been unleashing, but failed to even scratch Elden.

Erza didn't bother to reply as she charged once more towards Elden with swords in both of her hands. Elden is Fairy Tail's newest S Class mage who just made S Class the previous year. Elden is a reserved man that doesn't talk much, his powers is still a bit of a mystery to members of the guild that don't know him well, which is the majority of the guild members. The ones who had better understanding of his powers were probably the members of the Thunder God Tribe, which he was once a part of, and the slutty whore Mirajane. Elden and Mira had somehow strike up a close friendship with each other, much to the guild's surprise. No one thought that was possible due to the stark contrasts in their personalities.

Erza had an inkling of what Elden's powers is. She vaguely remembered that Elden had once tried to explain to Natsu that his magic is called Barrier-Make magic when Natsu decided to call it the "almost transparent rectangle magic thing" instead when he first witnessed Elden's magic. That description had annoyed Elden to no end, so he had tried to explain what his magic was to Natsu. In the end, Elden had enough of Natsu's stupidity and simply knocked him unconscious after 15 minutes of futile explanations. At least now she knows it is a form of molding magic like Gray's or Laki's, but they mold ice and wood respectively. But can barriers be made with molding magic? What is it made of anyway? Solid ethernano?

Elden's hands were still in the pockets of his jeans when Erza's swords were stopped by an invisible force. She cannot push any further no matter how hard she tried. She summoned countless swords that hovered around Elden and sent them flying towards him at high speeds from all directions. Her swords were stopped once more about two feet away from Elden in a sphere. Erza gritted her teeth. She doesn't know Elden that well, he is a recluse who is only slightly better than Mystogan when it comes to making friends. Elden rarely used his powers in the guild since he did not participate in the guild brawls, she don't know what to expect when facing him as an opponent. He always have this lazy demeanor and preferred napping or reading if he wasn't training or going on missions. She knows that he has to be strong to be classified as an S Class mage, but she didn't know he's _this_ strong. He's probably on the same strength as Laxus from what she had seen so far.

"You formed a dome of transparent barrier around you?"

"Duh, what else do you expect? I have no wish to be skewered, thank you very much."

Erza grinned, she had found out the weakness in Elden's magic in the short time they had exchanged blows. Victory's in her grasp now, she can finally complete this S Class trial. All she had to do now is to defeat Elden and secure the win that will allow her to be finally recognised as an S Class. She's going to beat that slutty Mirajane.

"Your magic doesn't have any offensive capabilities. You never attacked me, not even once. It's not because you don't want to, but because you can't. That's your weakness. You can defend all you want, but you will never win if you cannot attack your opponents."

Elden gave a small smile as he begin to clap slowly. "Bingo. Got it in one."

Erza's heart soared, she knew how to win this now! All she had to do is to continue her onslaught of attacks. The barriers couldn't possibly hold forever!

"Or at least you would have been correct, if you gave me that answer in like...five years ago? Or was it six years ago?"

 _What?!_

"You see, sometimes, the best defense makes a very good offense as well." Elden slowly held out a hand in front of him, the other still in his pocket. "Let me show you. **Shinra Tensei**."

Erza's swords, which were hovering about two feet away from Elden in a dome thanks to his transparent barriers, were suddenly blasted back with a sudden burst of explosive force. Erza was pushed back as well from the unexpected attack but she recovered her bearings quickly.

 _What in Mavis's name was that?!_

"As you deduced, I formed a dome of transparent barrier around me. What do you think will happen when I suddenly expand it outwards in all directions? It will look like everything around me will be pushed back by an invisible force, won't it? It's a good thing I managed to think of this idea. Saved me a lot on trouble on S Class missions." Elden said this as he stretched his stiff neck. "There are many other things I realised that I can do with barriers ever since I discovered this particular use. I still use my magic mainly for defensive purposes, that's true, but I have a wide range of offensive attacks as well. All I need is a lot of imagination, which I have in spades."

"Stop playing with me already! Get serious and fight me!"

"Eh, I'm playing with you? Well, sorry if you felt this way, but I really cannot get myself work up over this no matter how hard I tried. You cannot even punch a hole through my barriers. Laxus managed to do it, even if it was just a tiny hole, and he's S Class. Maybe I can consider letting you pass if you managed it as well?" Elden said the last phrase as if he was talking to himself. "Oh well, maybe I will just go on the offensive then. Watch out, Erza, here I come."

Erza stiffened upon hearing these words. With a wave of his hand, Elden's right hand gripped a translucent ethereal looking sword with the shape of a basic katana without a hilt. The katana vanished a moment later, but Elden's grip remained the same. Did Elden made a sword by reshaping his barriers into the shape of a katana and then turning it invisible? That's a very high level of skill for molding magic, even Gray didn't manage such a feat with ice even though ice is definitely a lot more malleable than solid barriers.

Elden gave a few practice swings before giving a shrug. "Thought I let you know that I'm using a sword. I usually don't let my opponents see them at all." He got into a lazy stance and used his left hand to make a 'come at me' motion. Elden knew how to use a sword?

"Any time you want, red."

The only warning Erza gave Elden was a deep breath she silently took before she dashed in to slice at Elden. Elden wasn't flustered as he calmly blocked and parried every single blow while moving as little as possible with that lazy gaze still in his eyes. Erza requipped into her Black Wing Armour as she held a sword in each hand to increase the ferocity of her attacks. Elden increased the speed of his swings as well as he continued to slowly move backwards. Seeing an opportunity, Erza quickly requipped into her Heaven's Wheel Armour and launched a huge amount of swords at Elden, who simply dodged out of the way before conjuring a huge rectangular block of barrier with a single hand to stop her swords. They both jumped back to keep a healthy amount of distance from each other, waiting for their opponent to make the next move.

"You are good, Erza. Your strength is already on the level of S Class and will definitely continue to grow. Heck, you may even make it to a Wizard Saint's level if you keep improving like that. However, let me ask you something. What do you fight for? Why do you fight?"

That sudden question caught Erza off guard, why is Elden asking such a question?

"I fight to become S Class, obviously."

Elden facepalmed as he gave a groan. "Never mind, I should have phrased it better." Elden's legs stood further apart and Elden brought his body closer to the ground while taking a sheathing stance of his sword. "Get ready, Erza. Try not to fall in one hit."

Erza recognised that stance, it was the stance of the Iaido. Skilled users of Iaido only need one hit to finish their opponents, their blades not even stained with the blood of their foes because it moved too quickly. It is a difficult technique to truly master. She got into her stance as well, this battle will end within the next move.

The chirp of a bird was the unspoken signal as both mages dashed towards each other and slashed at their opponents with speeds faster than what most people can comprehend with their eyes. Both of them stood on the opposite end with their backs facing each other. Erza wobbled, before her armour started to crack and fell into pieces as she collapsed onto the ground facing down. Elden stood in his usual lazy demeanor as he took off his jacket to cover Erza's nearly naked body, her armour was totally destroyed.

"I...I lost."

"Yea, you did. You still didn't tell me what you fight for though. You could have win if you answered that question. Your strike felt like it lacked conviction. That's what I felt anyway, I'm not a master swordsman so I don't know for sure, but that's what I felt."

"I...I just wanted to protect those close to me. I lost Rob...I lost Jel-, I lost my friend. I lost everyone who I cared about. I don't want to lose anyone anymore." Erza started to break out in small sobs as Elden sat down next to where Erza was lying curled up on the ground while patting her back awkwardly.

"There, there. At least now you know what you fight for. Cheer up, you have about..." Elden checked the time using the watch he strapped on his right wrist. "20 minutes? Before this segment of the test ends. You still have a chance to make S Class if you start to make your way to your destination now."

Erza immediately stood up in excitement, only to find Elden's back facing her.

"Clothes, Erza. You are barely wearing anything at the moment. Unless you intend on giving me a free show, I will never say 'no' to them."

Erza blushed as she quickly requipped her Heart Kreuz Armour although she reigned in the impulse to throttle Elden for that remark.

"I passed? But I didn't beat you!"

Elden snorted as he put his hands behind his head and lay back down onto the ground with his eyes closed. "Laxus and I didn't beat Gildarts either and we made S Class. You have the power for it and now you know the reason why you fight. That's enough for me to pass you." Elden slid out a hand from underneath his head and made a 'go away' motion with it. "Shoo, time's a wastin'. You better go now unless you want Mira to reach the end point before you did. I will lie here for a while before I meet up with Master."

Erza quickly muttered her thanks before running off to her destination. She passed the first segment! There's still a chance to achieve S Class!

Erza hurried her pace, she must hurry to the end point before Mira did, the she-demon would never let her hear the end of it if Erza reached the end point later than her.

* * *

I whistled a tune as I slowly walked towards the direction of Magnolia from where I am now. I had just finished a solo S Class mission and it was still early, I wanted to enjoy the scenery while travelling back to the guild. Erza had made S Class a few weeks ago, much to Mira's chagrin, and she never let me hear the end of it for letting Erza pass, saying that I had broke the 'bro code' by passing her. Hence, I decided that it may be a wiser decision to just take my time to head back to the guild for the sake of my ears. Mira wanted to come with me as well, saying that she needed more experience in handling S Class missions. However, I wanted a moment of peace and quiet, even if Mira's a good teammate to have and an even better friend despite how she currently carry herself. I know she will have a drastic change in personality after Lisanna's presumed death but I'm trying to think of ways to prevent Lisanna's death. They Strauss siblings did nothing to deserve the separation they experienced like what happened in canon. Even if by saving Lisanna Mira will never become the sweet and motherly woman that I was familiar with in the manga, I will still try to prevent Lisanna from 'dying'.

They are my friends now.

I immediately stop whistling when I heard movements from the bushes on the side of the road. The existence of magic in my body had enhanced my senses and physical capabilities to ridiculous degrees. I could probably take part in any sports in the Olympics in my previous world and win simply by having magic running through my body.

Was that...sounds of crying?

I discreetly raised a transparent shield of barrier around me in a sphere as I walked further into the woods at the side of the main road. Using what knowledge I had of physics in my previous world regarding the properties of light, I had altered the properties of the barriers such that it refract light around it, causing me to disappear from sight and be technically invisible to the naked eye. I had also made sure that my scent will not leak out of the barriers, Natsu had checked that for me when I was trying to perfect this particular function of my magic. The sounds made by me, be it footsteps or breathing, were also muffled.

It only took me a minute or two to find the source of the disturbance. A young girl, who I estimate to be around five to seven years of age, was sitting down on the ground with her back to a large tree. She hugged her knees close to her chest as she buried her head in it. She was sobbing. I twitched uncomfortably, comforting people when they are sad is not exactly my forte. The young girl had short white hair with a slight light blue tinge that extends up to her neck, it was almost like looking at a younger version of Lisanna.

The Strauss siblings don't have a fourth sibling, right?

I dropped most of my barriers, making me visible once more. I only left a transparent rectangular one that hover in front of me without a trace of its presence. Even if it was unlikely that this young girl will attack me, it would protect me from any sudden attacks should she have the capability to hurt others. This young girl is obviously a mage given the amount of magic power I felt from her. Being S Class makes you paranoid like hell, things can always go to shit on S Class missions when you least expect it. I may not be on a mission, but it does not hurt to be careful.

"Hello, can I help you?"

The young girl was startled as her head shot up to look at me. She was afraid, I can tell that much when she tried to put some distance between us the moment I made myself known to her while clutching something in her hands that looked like a black and gold key. She tried to move backwards, only to have her back pressed to the tree behind her. I slowly crouched down to her level with my palms opened and visible to her, I don't want to scare her more than necessary. For all I know, she could have just experienced the same thing I did when I first arrived into this world. It wouldn't be a surprise from what I could see. The clothes that the girl was wearing has been reduced to rags and I could see blood stains as well.

"I don't mean any harm, I swear it. I am a member of the mage guild, Fairy Tail. See?" I took off my dark blue jacket and rolled up the sleeves of my shirt to show her the dark blue guild mark I stamped onto my right shoulder. "I am not a thug, a bandit, or a dark mage. I am not a bad guy. Is there anything I can help you with?" I spoke slowly, trying not to agitate the already frightened kid.

The kid nodded slowly in response. Good, she understands me. I just hoped that she isn't mute, that will complicate things.

"My name is Elden Tyrell. El-den Ty-rell. What's your name?" I spoke slowly to make sure she got my name right. Natsu heard my name wrong the first time we met and it took two months for me to correct him. That annoying stupid little shit. "What's your name?"

"I-I.." The girl coughed as she tried to get words out from her hoarse throat. I quickly gave her some water to drink from my water flask that I always bring along with me. She gulped the waters down greedily and only stopped when there was nothing more to drink from the flask. She looked embarrassed by her actions but I simply smiled at her and produced another flask from my requip space. I cannot do anything fancy like Erza but I can do enough to store a few objects. My proficiency with requip only allowed me to go on missions without bringing any luggage. That's about the full extent of the powers I have with requip. I don't know why there aren't more people who learn this magic. It's pretty useful.

The girl drank from the second flask as I sat down beside her and rubbed her back soothingly, trying to ensure that she doesn't accidentally choke herself while she drank. She drank way too fast. "Easy there, the water's not going anywhere. I still have more of it if you want to drink later. I don't know how long you went without food or water, but drinking a large amount of water immediately after a long period of dehydration probably isn't the best idea. Just take small but frequent sips."

The girl looked at me and gave me a nod while holding onto my flask with both her hands. _Kawaii!_ If I ever have a long-lost sister or a daughter in the future, will she look and act like her?

The girl took another small, careful sip of water before speaking.

"My name is Yukino Agria."

I nearly did a spit-take as I looked at the girl closely once more. Short white-bluish hair? Check. Big eyes? Check. Possible current age range based from what I know from the manga? Check.

Holy Mavis, this is the same Yukino that joined Sabertooth, isn't it?

Nah, not anymore. Screw canon, no way am I leaving her out here to fend for herself.

The girl looked a little uncomfortable from how I was staring at her and I quickly averted my gaze. Instead, I gave her a big smile and held out my right hand to her.

"Hello, Yukino. Would you like to join Fairy Tail?"

* * *

 **AN: The powers that I created for my oc, Elden, is inspired from the Bari Bari no Mi, or the barrier devil fruit from One Piece. The FT fanfics that I read did not characters with powers like these so I thought it will be fun to write an oc with such powers. Many ocs I read about almost always have offensive magic, so I thought that I will do something different and try to come up with a magic that focuses on defense. In this case, I think that molding magic would be the best category for Barrier magic to fall into as it sounds the most logical, so I made the magic for my oc here Barrier-Make magic, the ability to create and shape barriers into different shapes with different properties.**

 **To my readers that came here and knew me from my other work, IJWTTTW, this FT fanfic is a side project of mine that I wrote in the short period after I posted the 20th chapter for IJWTTTW. I outdid myself by managing to write at least 5 chapters for this fanfic within 2 days. Like I said in IJWTTTW, I would not be posting any new chapters for IJWTTTW or this fanfic due to the fact that school has started for me, and I will be on hiatus until around the period of May. I will continue to post one chapter a day that I had already wrote for TAOFT during the short two days that I used to write it until I had reached the end of my stash, and TAOFT will be on a temporary hiatus after that as well.**

 **I will most likely be posting one chapter a day for TAOFT, partly because I'm evil like that and partly because I want to know what my readers thought of the idea I presented here before reading the next chapter. I will probably finish posting all the chapters before the week is up, I don't have that many finished chapters on hand. I only have about 2 days to write all of them after all.**

 **Let me know what you think, and I hoped that you enjoyed this chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2- The Beast

Yukino instantly became a celebrity within the guild the moment I introduced her to them.

Yukino is a respectful kid, and that was a huge plus to those who met her. It also helped that she's so adorable that the ladies of the guild will fuss over her the entire day if they could. The guys were at her every beck and call. Yukino had the whole guild wrapped around her little finger without anyone, including her, realising it.

Makarov had no problems letting Yukino join Fairy Tail seeing as she had nowhere else to go and that she has a large amount of magic for her age. There's no way she wouldn't be a mage given her magical reserves, and she needs proper guidance from a mage to learn how to control her powers. I loved Yukino as a younger sister, and she adored me as an older brother figure as well. With that in mind, I tried to convince Makarov to let me adopt her as my younger sister. I am currently 17 years old and definitely old enough to care for a kid a decade younger than me.

The only problem was that my apartment is only big enough to accommodate only me. I wasn't planning on rooming with anyone prior to meeting Yukino.

Mira was a great help as she volunteered to let Yukino stay with her and her siblings in their larger apartment instead. They have an extra room which they can clear out for Yukino to stay in. I wanted to find a bigger apartment as fast as possible so that I can let Yukino move in with me without giving the Strauss siblings too much trouble. Mira just whacked me on the head upon hearing that from me. She told me that she and her siblings were ok with helping to care for Yukino and that I don't need to find a new apartment. They had taken a great liking to Yukino as well and declared her as their unofficial fourth sibling. It also helps that they all have similar physical characteristics especially with their hair colour, no outsiders will suspect that Yukino aren't actually blood-related to the Strauss siblings.

In the end, Makarov placed me and the Strauss siblings in charge of caring for Yukino's well-being, and Yukino gained four siblings that day.

Time passed quicker with Yukino around. I had kind of shut myself off from the world ever since my friendship with Laxus was ruined. He was the one I mainly talked to. The other members of the Thunder God Tribe were torn between following me or Laxus but I persuaded them to follow Laxus. It's too dangerous to let Laxus be on his own without any form of human company given his current mental state. However, this means that the three of them would not be able to converse with me in the open when Laxus is around for fear of incurring his wrath. Luckily in that same year, the Strauss siblings joined Fairy Tail as well. We were good friends, but I just have a better relationship with Mira among the three of them. I was the one who actually helped them to settle down in Fairy Tail when they first joined and to help hunt for an apartment for them to stay in, so we became friends quickly. I am also good friends with most of the guild members as well but my time with them tends to end up trying to avoid guild brawls that would erupt at random times, something which I have no wish to take part in. Thankfully, the Strauss siblings weren't so prone to guild brawls, at least not for now. Mira is ok as long as she is not exposed to Erza within 5 feet from each other. Elfman is currently still too shy and Lisanna is too sweet to get involved in a guild brawl. No one has the heart to hurt a sweet girl like Lisanna.

Most of my free time now is spent teaching Yukino basic knowledge, like how to read and write together with simple math. I tried to teach her whatever I knew as long as she is capable of learning it. When Makarov deemed her ready to start learning about magic, we started to teach her on how to access her powers. We had no doubt that Yukino was going to be a Celestial Spirit mage, she already had a gate key when I first found her, the one that she clutched in her hand like a lifeline. It was Ophiuchus, the gate of the snake charmer. According to Yukino, that key was given to her. Her sister had gave her the key to protect herself when Zeref cultists came and killed almost everyone in her village. Her sister was nowhere to be seen after that.

I don't know where Sorano, or will be later known as Angel from Oracion Seis, got this elusive key from in the remote area where Yukino said her family used to stay, but I'm not complaining.

The Strauss siblings and I had to search the guild archives on how to properly invoke Celestial Spirit magic since it is not a common type of magic you see among mages. We also made it a point to keep a look out for any gate keys that Yukino can add to her collection, especially the golden zodiac keys. It took a while to try and teach Yukino the proper way to summon Celestial Spirits, but the bright smile on Yukino's face when she first managed to successfully call upon Ophiuchus was enough reward for the four of us. All we wanted is for her to be happy.

I'm not sure how much I had changed things when I stumbled onto my next unexpected find only a few months after I had found Yukino. I had went on a joint mission with the Strauss siblings when we found a golden zodiac key. We found the key for the gate of the lion, to be more specific.

I gaped in shock as I watched Lisanna kept the key in her pouch for safekeeping so that we can give it to Yukino when we returned to the guild. From what I could remember, Loke was supposed to be contracted to a mage from Blue Pegasus. His owner didn't treat her spirits well and upon his owner's unexpected death, Loke was banished from the Celestial Spirit World until Lucy saved him. Did we just found Loke's key even before that Blue Pegasus mage did? Did I just deny Lucy of one of her most powerful spirits?

Oh well, it wasn't like Loke's former owner in canon treated him well. Lucy will also have a whole lot of other zodiac spirits in the end, her Aquarius was pretty strong too. Maybe I can compensate by helping her get Sagittarius's key from Galuna Island? Capricorn seemed to be quite powerful too, I remember that Layla chose him when she asked him if he could serve her descendants out of all the zodiac spirits in her possession. What was Capricorn's powers again?

Yukino was bursting with joy when the four of us gave her Loke's key. She still does not have the required power to summon him for very long, but it was long enough for her to form a contract with Loke. According to customs, we were supposed to address Loke by his given title, Leo the lion, but the cheerful spirit just told Yukino to call him Loke instead. I felt relieved when Yukino contracted with Loke, having such a strong spirit by her side will help to ensure her safety in case none of the Fairy Tail members were able to reach her in time during an emergency. Loke is also strong enough to come to the Human World using his own powers if he sensed that Yukino is in danger, so Yukino now have a bodyguard that is able to protect her round the clock.

Another two years passed. All of us had grown both physically and mentally. I am now 19 years old. Laxus was two years older than me in this world, so he is 21 years old. Mira is two years younger than me at 17 years old, Elfman is 16 while Lisanna is 15. Yukino is a decade younger than me and she is currently 9 years old. My relationship with Laxus is still strained and we didn't talk much despite being fellow S Class mages. Mira had made S Class herself a year ago while Mystogan only just joined the ranks of S Class mages a few weeks ago. I don't see him around much in the guild. I am able to fight off his sleeping spell with no problems, but it is annoying trying to converse with him while having that woozy drowsy feeling. He is not one to banter either, so our conversations were brief.

"Alright! We are taking this mission!"

I glanced to the job request that Mira was holding as she sat beside me on the second floor of the guild, an area reserved only for S Class mages. My eyes widened momentarily in shock. It seems that what I feared has finally arrived.

"I don't think that is a good mission to go for, Mira. I had heard about this monster called "The Beast". It's hard to take down, even for S Class mages." That's not a lie. There were rumours about this monster floating around when I went for my various job requests that took me all across Fiore. It reminded me to keep a lookout for this job request in case it really got posted to our guild. I'm glad I found out about it considering the sorrow this monster will bring to the Strauss siblings in canon.

"Hah! That may be the case for you, but this job practically had the Strauss's family name written on it! It is the best job for us Take Over mages! We are suited for this!"

I rolled my eyes. "Yes, I know. But it never hurts to be more careful. I'm coming along with you for this one. No offense to you, you are strong, but even then your powers might not be enough to defeat it. I heard enough horror stories about mages dying to it. I don't want to risk losing you or your siblings."

"Nuh-uh." Mira quicky rose from her seat and distanced herself away from me while sticking her tongue out childishly. "I'm completing this mission with Elfman and Lisanna. You stay out of this. We will show you the proper way to complete S Class missions."

"Mira-"

"See you later! Bye!"

I groaned as I slumped back onto the chair I was sitting on. This girl will be the death of me.

I looked down onto the first floor and saw that Mira had already registered the mission with Makarov and disappeared from the guild hall together with her siblings. They sure moved quickly. I floated down onto the first floor using my barrier as a floating platform and randomly grabbed a job request on the first floor whose job was in the same location as Mira's job request. It will be a perfect excuse to follow her.

"Hey Levy." I walked up to the blue haired girl who was reading at a quiet corner. We had a shared love for books but I hardly had the chance to talk to her thanks to her overprotective teammates, who kept thinking I'm here to compete with them in getting Levy's attention. Joke's on them. Nevertheless, Levy is one of the more level-headed members in Fairy Tail who I can entrust Yukino to.

Levy looked up at me when I called her. "Can you help me look after Yukino for a few days? I need to go after Mira and her siblings. No offense to her but I don't think she is ready to go on that particular S Class mission yet. Here's the spare key to Mira's apartment." I dangled a key in front of her which Levy took from me. "You can stay temporarily at Mira's place to help look after Yukino or bring her to your place. Either one's fine, but Yukino will need to grab her stuffs from Mira's place first if you plan to bring her along with you."

"Sure thing." Levy chirped back. "Stay safe, the four of you."

After saying my thanks to Levy and informing Yukino that I will be gone for a few days similar to the Strauss siblings, I turned to look for Makarov. He was at his usual spot on top of the bar table downing mugs of alcohol.

"Master, I-"

"Just hand me your job request and go after Mira already. I trust your judgement. If you think Mira and her siblings aren't ready yet, then they aren't ready. Leave that job request you took from the mission board on the first floor with me. You won't need that as an excuse to go after her. Just tell her I sent you."

"Thank you, Master."

I left the job request by his side as I ran out of the guild hall to catch up with the Strauss siblings. I had memorised the location on the job request to exterminate The Beast when I first saw it in Mira's hands. They would most probably travel by train, so the train station should be the first stop I'm heading for if I want to find them.

"Hey El! What's up!"

I stopped temporarily in my tracks as I saw Natsu and Happy making their way towards me from a side road. Maybe they saw Mira and the others?

"Natsu, Happy. Did you see Mira and the others?"

"Aye! They went towards the train station. Natsu wanted to follow them but Mira didn't allow him to, said that he was too inexperienced for an S Class mission."

"I'm totally capable-"

"Thank you, Happy, Natsu. But I need to get going now."

I cut the duo off from our conversation as I ran as fast as I could towards the train station. I least I had confirmation now.

I cursed when I saw that the train the Take Over siblings were on had already left when I finally reached there. I checked the train schedule, the next departing train won't arrive until a few hours later!

Hopefully I can still make it in time.

A transparent rectangular barrier formed beneath my feet and it slowly floated off the ground with me standing on it. It flew off with me as a passenger like a flying magic carpet as I sped off towards the direction where the Strauss siblings were supposedly headed by following the train tracks. I cannot travel as fast as the train for over long distances. I have huge magical reserves, but it won't allow me to fuel my flight at the same speed in which the train was going for very long. My magic reserves tends to run out faster the more I increase the speed in which my barriers are flying. I need to conserve my magical powers. This flight will be a long one and I will need to tone down the speed a little if I want to even reach my destination.

I hoped that I won't be too late. At the speed in which the train and I were going respectively, the difference in our speed and the timing in which we left Magnolia will hopefully let me arrive at the job's location only an hour later at the maximum. I don't know what exactly went wrong with that mission in canon, but I know that Elfman ended up taking over The Beast and injured Lisanna. The end result was that everyone thought Lisanna was dead while she was in fact being sucked into Edolas via the Anima, causing her to be separated from Earthland for two years. Was The Beast too strong for the three of them to handle? Or did they try to let Elfman gain a new Take Over, only for it to backfire horribly?

Please, let me be on time.

* * *

She should have listen to Elden.

Mirajane watched as Elfman roared in his Full Body Take Over and destroyed everything in his sight. Elfman had lost control. She herself had tried to stop The Beast together with Elfman as Lisanna went to evacuate everyone in the nearby town. Elden was right, it was too strong for even her to handle. They can't stop its rampage. It wasn't long before Mirajane ran out of magic and was punched into the mountain rocks by The Beast. In order to save her, Elfman had attempted to use a Take Over on that monster, but it failed.

It failed horribly. She was careless, and now Elfman is paying for her mistakes.

"Mira-nee!" Mirajane watched as Lisanna arrived by flight and landing next to her in a bird type Take Over. Lisanna reverted back to her human form as she stood protectively in front of Mirajane.

"Run, Lisanna! I was careless! In order to protect me, Elfman tried a Take Over spell on The Beast!"

"Are you saying...?"

"Its magical powers is too great. Elfman has lost his grip on reality!"

"What will happen to Elf-niichan?!"

The Beast slowly walked up to the sisters as Lissana tried to help Mirajane stand up. Mirajane winced in pain and she tried to summon her powers once again. Nothing responded, her magic powers had really ran out.

"If he doesn't come to his senses soon, he will be consumed by The Beast."

Mirajane watched in horror as her younger sister did the one thing she never expected her to do. Lisanna walked up to The Beast who is only now about twenty feet away from them. Without her sister's support, Mirajane fell down back onto the ground. _What is Lisanna doing?!_

"Elf-niichan, what's the matter?"

Mirajane wanted to scream at Lissana to get back, but she was afraid of even making a single sound for fear of agitating The Beast, which her brother was now merged with. _Please, let the both of them be alright._ Lissana was still talking to The Beast, and Mirajane didn't really focus on what she said. All of her attention was focused on The Beast's movements, she would intervene at the slightest hint of danger to get Lisanna out of there.

"...Come on, let's go home, Elf-niichan."

The only response The Beast gave was to raise an arm to smack Lisanna as Mirajane let out a silent scream. She watched in slow motion as the arm of The Beast fell towards Lisanna and she tried to get there in time, only to find herself unable to move due to her injuries.

 _LISANNA!_

" **BARRIER-MAKE: FAIRY'S AEGIS!** "

A large translucent and intricately designed shield coated in an ethereal blue light, with the guild's insignia carved in the middle formed between Lisanna and the arm of The Beast. A resounding sound similar to those of a gong echoed around the mountains. A large skeletal arm made up of many intricately carved barriers that knitted themselves together in various shapes grabbed Lisanna and pulled her out of the danger zone.

Mirajane never felt so relieved in her entire life. She knew that technique even though she only saw it once before. Elden's here.

"What the _HELL_ were you thinking, Lissana?! You wanna die that badly?!"

"Elf-niichan is in there!"

"And dying will help you get him out of it?! Are you dumb or _dumb_?!"

Elden jumped in front of Mirajane with Lisanna still in the grasp of his skeletal construct. It had now expanded itself to surround Elden with a ribcage and another skeletal arm had appeared as well.

"Lisanna, take Mira out of here. I can't fight with the both of you in the way. I promise I will try my best to get Elfman back."

"But-"

"Lisanna. Listen to Elden. We need to move now if we want to get Elfman back."

Lissana helped Mirajane up as the arms of Elden's skeletal construct intercept the barrage of fists raining down on their location by grabbing the fists of The Beast and pushed against the monster in a contest of strength. After putting a safe distance between themselves and where the battle was happening, Mirajane took a final look at her brother and Elden.

"El, _please_ , save Elfman. If he-"

"Don't worry. I will."

The Strauss sisters watched as Elden clapped his hands together as if he is in a prayer and muttered something. The construct screeched as a skeletal head began to will itself into existence above the ribcage. Only the upper half of the skeletal humanoid construct is created as muscle fibers began to cover the bones followed by a layer of skin. The humanoid construct then donned a layer of heavy armour of oriental design around it and grew another pair of arms. Only the upper half was created as Elden stood within the construct. Any hint of his usual lazy demeanor is now gone. One of the humanoid's left arms held a shield emblazoned with the guild mark in its center and one of its right arm a hiltless katana.

"Barrier-Make: Susanoo Stage II." Elden whispered.

Elden and the humanoid construct moved as one and rammed into The Beast with its shield, pushing it back. The Beast roared in rage as it tried to pummel the humanoid construct, only for it to raise the shield to block the blows. The humanoid construct sent The Beast flying with a swing of its sword and Eldan immediately pinned its limbs down with the humanoid's four hands. The ethereal shield and sword had vanished as Elden willed it away in favour of pinning the arms and legs of The Beast. Mirajane watched as Elden began to prepare another spell within the safety of the humanoid he created with his Barrier-Make magic.

Mirajane began to watch in anticipation as she recognised the spell Elden was trying to use. It is Dispel magic, a Caster magic that causes the annulment of a spell. It's not that hard to learn the basics and it can be used for many different types of situations. Most of the higher level mages in the guild knows how to use it to an extent, Master Makarov had tried to teach them this particular magic at one point or another. The Master was a pro at it together with many other types of magic even though he hardly uses them in favour of his Titan magic. Mirajane would have used this spell as well to save Elfman if she did not run out of magic. Elden is taking a longer time than usual because Elfman is currently too big a target, and the Dispel needed more time to charge up the power required to save Elfman.

After what seemed like an eternity, Elden charged up the required magic power as he pointed towards Elfman with his right index and middle finger.

"Dispel!"

The Beast flashed in a display of light as it slowly reverted back to the form of Elfman, who lay unconscious on the ground where The Beast once was. Elden stayed in his construct for a little longer before willing it away when he was sure that Elfman will not be transforming again anytime soon. With a flick of his fingers, a rectangular platform of barrier rose from the ground to lift Elfman up and Eldan walked back to the Strauss sisters with Elfman floating beside him.

"Any critical injuries?"

"Mira-nee and I are fine, but how's Elf-niichan?!"

"He should be fine too. Just exhausted. I think it would be a good idea for him to put off using Take Over for a while, I don't know if The Beast is still active within him." Elden flicked his fingers once more as all three of them were lifted off the ground by a single translucent barrier.

"Come on, we are getting your wounds treated. Then we are going home."

* * *

"So there you are."

Mirajane raised her head from where it was buried within her knees. She haven't been talking much to anyone ever since the four of them got back from that botched up mission and returned to Magnolia a day ago.

Lisanna could have died. Elfman could have died. And it was all her fault. The three of them could have all lost their lives if Elden didn't come after them.

"Elfman is still locking himself in his own room. He won't eat or drink nor did he spoke a word. Lisanna and Yukino are worried sick about him, you know?" Elden spoke as he took a seat beside Mirajane where she was sitting by the bank of the river that ran through Magnolia. Mirajane didn't want to go back to the guild hall after that mission. She wanted some time to be alone, the river was a nice place to spend time alone and undisturbed. "He's probably still feeling guilty, the only one who could get him out of his funk is probably you."

"It's all my fault." Mirajane blurted out. "I should have listened to you, we shouldn't have gone on that mission! Lisanna could have died! Elfman could have been consumed! And it is all my fault!"

"You could have died as well." Elden admitted as he put a comforting hand on Mirajane's shoulder. "But the fact is that all three of you survived, the mission was successfully completed, and Elfman just gained himself a powerful Take Over. So stop blaming yourself. Elfman is already doing lots of that already, something which I don't understand since what he did was a desperate act to try to save you, he had noble intentions behind what he did despite the fact that he failed. I have already berated Lisanna for doing something so stupid and she had learnt her mistake. So stop blaming yourself. Things always screw up on S Class missions, you know it the moment you became an S Class mage. The possibility of death is part of our job description as mages. The most important thing is that everyone came back alive."

"If you didn't come after us-"

"That's what friends are for, isn't it? To knock sense into each other and to save each other from danger. I have no doubt that if I faced the same circumstances as you did, you would have come running after me as well." Elden gave a light punch on Mirajane's shoulders as he rolled his eyes. "Come on, snap out of it already, you know how bad I am at this comforting people stuff. I'm more comfortable with the punk also known as the she-demon of Fairy Tail, not the depressed version of it. It feels so awkward talking to you when you are like this. Cheer up. Besides, Elfman needs you now more than ever."

Mirajane let a small laugh escape her lips as she punched Elden back halfheartedly. Elden's right, they are all still alive, and that's what matters. She gave Elden a tight hug and she secretly enjoyed how Elden looked flustered from the sudden intimate physical contact. He settled for returning the hug awkwardly in a typical Elden fashion much to Mirajane's amusement. Elden is very wary of who he had physical contact with, something that Master said was probably due to the circumstances in which he first found Elden in before he joined Fairy Tail. Master had once secretly told her that he speculated that the fact that Elden's natural magic took the form of defensive barriers may be due to his unconscious desire to protect himself by keeping himself away from others. It was the reason why Master asked Mirajane and her siblings help Elden in learning how to socialise by interacting more with him since they were one of the few that Elden regularly talked to. No one other than Master and Laxus knew about Elden's past before he joined Fairy Tail since Elden was one of the earliest to join the guild among the other members of their age, even before Cana, and Elden was tight-lipped about his past. Mirajane only knew that Elden's parents had passed away a long time ago. Master and Laxus didn't say anything about Elden's past as well and the guild respected Elden's need for privacy.

"Um...Mira? Not that I don't enjoy the hug, but people are looking."

"Aww...is the big bad Aegis of Fairy Tail embarrassed by a hug? It looks like you need more of these then. Funny how you don't mind Yukino's hug but you didn't want one from me."

Mirajane heard a snort from Elden. "I really should kill that annoying reporter. What's his name? Jason? What makes him think that 'The Aegis of Fairy Tail' is a good moniker? He just ripped that name from one of my known techniques! And Yukino's a kid, she's practically my sister at this point. _Our_ little sister. You may act and dress like a punk, but you are a lady as well. Other than the fact that people are watching, it doesn't help that your twin orbs are pressing against my chest, and I'm a hormonal teenager. I'm not complaining, but if we really want to hug each other in this manner until the sun goes down, can we please do it somewhere that is more private?"

Mirajane blushed a little as she released Elden from her hug, but kept the shit-eating grin on her face.

"Did I hear things right? Are you calling me pretty? You barely talked to anyone else in the guild despite the amount of pretty girls in our guild, and you called _me_ pretty? I'm a punk. Punks don't do pretty."

Elden laid down on his back on the ground where they were sitting. "I thought we had already established that you are a punk? But yeah, you are a beautiful punk. I still don't know why you decide to act like one though. If you dressed up a little you could probably be a model for the Sorcerer Magazine. You really are beautiful."

"S-Stop saying I'm pretty! I'm a punk!"

"I believe I said beautiful instead of pretty. But Mira, are you a _tsundere_? Oh my, I didn't expect that." Elden closed his eyes as he basked in the warmth of the sun's rays, but there's no mistaking that near unnoticeable grin on his face.

Mirajane's jaw dropped. Is Fairy Tail's quiet recluse, the one whose social skills is only slightly above Mystogan, the socially awkward Elden _teasing_ her?

"We really better get going before Elfman did something stupid." Elden said as he suddenly stood up and grabbed Mira before slinging her over his shoulders like a sack of potatoes. "You are obviously alright now, so now it's time to beat some sense into Elfman. I swear if his antics make Yukino cry..."

"Hey! Put me down!"

Elden didn't respond as he flew with the application of his Barrier Magic towards Mirajane's apartment, with Mirajane shouting at him to put her down throughout the duration of their short journey.

The blush didn't completely leave Mirajane's face as they flew together above Magnolia. One thought kept repeating itself in her mind.

 _He called me beautiful._

* * *

 **AN: Ok after I had my lunch I suddenly felt like posting a chapter a day just seems like a stupid idea so I am posting everything I had in one shot. I am still editing chapter 5 so that will take a while, but it should be up by the end of today.**

 **According to the FT wiki, Makarov does know a wide range of magic other than his signature Titan magic, including magic like Fire magic, Ice magic, Light magic, and also Dispel magic. Hence, it make sense that mages in the FT verse could possibly know more than one type of magic. So far, I gave Elden Requip and Dispel magic on top of his Barrier-Make.**

 **I wanted to try and do a fanfic with romance in it, hence the interaction between Mira and Elden. It's something I have never attempted before. I chose Mira because she did not have a partner even by the end of the series, even if many people ship Laxus x Mira. I thought that out of all the FT characters, Mira has the most beautiful heart from the way she cared about her guild mates and how she fight for them, so I decided to try a Mira and oc pairing.**

 **Elden had also changed a part of canon as well, and I'm trying to see what are the possible consequences of such an action. So far, I haven't thought of anything negative about this outcome.**

 **I hoped you enjoyed the story thus far.**


	3. Chapter 3- The 24 Hours Road Race

"The 24 hours endurance road race? And it will commence tomorrow?"

"Oh, I forgot you somehow didn't take part in any of it since it was first hosted three years ago. It's actually pretty fun. The first race was nearly cancelled when Gildarts nearly obliterated a part of the town when he released a blast of his magic at the starting point, the second race was a close tie between Jet and Laxus due to the nature of their magic, but Jet won. Natsu and Happy nearly won the third race, but Natsu made the mistake of trying to cling onto Jet when he sped past him and got motion sickness instead. Jet won that race as well. Where were you during these three years when we had the race anyway? How did you manage to miss it for three consecutive years?" Mira said as she sat down on the table next to me.

I furrowed my brows in thought. Mira's right. Why didn't I know anything about such an event for three years?

"Mira-nee, the race used to be held in the month of March every year. El-niichan usually spent a week in his hometown visiting his parents' graves during that same time before going on a long mission. He usually would not be in town during the month of March. Master told me it has been that way for years."

Mira eyes widened in realisation at Yukino's words and she looked at me.

"I-I'm sorry, El, I didn't mean-"

"It's fine, Mira. I got over their deaths a long time ago. At least I get to participate in the race this year. It sounds like a lot of fun."

"It is! I missed the first two races but I saw the one held last year! It was so exciting! I told Master to postpone the race this year to wait for you to come back so you can participate in it as well! I know you can win!"

I laughed as I ruffled Yukino's hair fondly. "Thanks, Yukino. Are you participating in this year's race as well?"

"Not until I'm older." Yukino visibly shuddered. "I'm too young, I'm only nine. I don't want to get involved in the fighting that happens during the race until I'm older. The other members can be so competitive."

I raised my eyebrows. "I thought it was only just a race? Why is there fighting?"

"We are Fairy Tail, El." Lisanna chimed in, the name of our guild was all the explanation we need. "In the race, all forms of magic are allowed and no one is allowed to drop out of the race. The one who came in last had to suffer a punishment from the Master as well. We are allowed to sabotage each other as long as it is within the limit of the rules of the race."

I rolled my eyes. "Master planned the race so he could deliver the punishment, that has to be it."

"But the race is manly! I won't lose! Even to a man like you, El! I will win this year!"

I gave Elfman a smirk. "We shall see, Elfman. I'm looking forward to it already."

"Don't forget about me! I can fly with Satan Soul!" Mira proclaimed, and I could feel the traces of the she-demon personality leaking out.

"Ah...about that..." Yukino rubbed the back of her head sheepishly as she tried to look down at her feet and avoid eye contact with us. "I _might_ have suggested to Master that flying kinds of defeat the purpose of a road race when he asked for my input, so he prohibited the use of flying magic this year..." Yukino's voice descended into a whisper towards the last part of her sentence.

Despite the usual din in the guild hall, it suddenly fell into an uncharacteristic silence when Yukino said those words, everyone in the guild turned towards Yukino with a mixture of expressions on their faces. Some of them lit up with joy, some of them were filled with shock and disbelief.

"YUKINO!" The guild chorused in an unexpected show of teamwork, but whether it was a cry of joy or shock really depends on the individual.

"I'M SORRY!"

Things somehow quickly escalated into another guild brawl and Elfman gave a roar of challenge before jumping into the fray. I quickly shielded the rest of our little group as we made our way to a corner of the guild near to the bar where we were safe from all the fighting. Mira and Elfman had changed ever since they came back from the mission to subjugate The Beast a few months ago. To sum things up, the main changes were to their personalities, which were now a lot more similar to those that I had read about in the manga in my previous life.

Elfman's personality had changed from being a shy guy into the one that I was familiar with when I first read the manga. He sought to become stronger to protect his sisters and tried really hard to master his Take Over magic. He still had ways to go before being able to do a complete Full Body Take Over but he is on the right track. Mirajane's personality had mellowed out as well and she became more motherly and kind. She had changed out of her usual skimpy punk attire and now her usual attire is a sleeveless, ankle-length maroon dress that I remembered she wore in the anime. However, she had retained her magic as Lisanna is still alive. I don't see Anima anywhere when I evacuated them out from the mountains after we subjugated The Beast, so I'm unsure how much of canon I had really changed. Mira works at the guild bar now. She had nearly stopped going on missions altogether but at my insistence, she still went on the occasional S Class missions with me so that her skills as a mage would not rust. Her rivalry with Erza had ended as well, but sometimes traces of her old personality from her she-demon days will resurface if anyone pressed the wrong buttons or if she gets excited. She also changed her hairdo into the one I was more familiar with in the manga by tying the hair in front of her forehead in an upward ponytail instead of the large ponytail she tied her hair in at the back of her head. Her drastic change in personality took everyone a while to get used to, but no one said anything when they learned the reason for it.

It was a welcome change for everyone.

I laid back on a reclining chair I created using my barriers as I thought about how I spent my time in March. Like Yukino said, I would usually spend a week by the graves of the parents I had in this life while I reminisce about my past. Nobody in this world remembered them except for me, thanks to the memories retained by this body, and even though I wasn't technically part of their family, I owe my second life to them. It felt right to go back at least once a year to keep them company. The visit would usually leave me in a depressed mood for a short while afterwards and I don't want the guild to deal with a gloomy me, so I usually picked a job that would get me out of Magnolia for a week or two before I went for my visit, I would start the job after I finished my visit to the parents I had in this world.

I never expect that Yukino would place such high importance on something like this, and actually acted on her own initiative to include me in the events that the guild planned.

A flying stool would have hit Lisanna's face until it exploded into splinters when it collided against my barrier.

"Sometimes I'm glad that your magic is one for defense, El. It is useful if you want to get out of situations like this. But even now I still don't get how it works. What are your barriers made of anyway? How can you make it move like the avatar you created back when you saved us? I was of the impression that it was a Static type of molding magic, but your creation actually moved like a living being, like those of a Dynamic type. What was it called? Susan-o?"

"It's called _Susanoo_ , Lisanna." I corrected her. "And yes, my magic is a Static type of molding magic like Gray's. I still don't know exactly what my barriers are made of and what it entails, even Master doesn't have a clue. We guessed that I somehow have the capability to make ethernano solid, but we still don't know how true that is. There's no way to test it." I paused as I tried to think of a way to describe the concept of how Susanoo works. "The Susanoo is a construct made up of many differently shaped barriers that I fit together like a jigsaw puzzle. To move it, I need to move the different barriers needed to generate the exact movement I need it to do for me. Let's say I need the move the index finger on its right hand, I will need to move the barriers that I used to make up the bones of its index fingers. I based the Susanoo from the human anatomy and a typical human adult has 206 different bones in their body. I created one unique barrier for one bone and shaped each barrier like a real bone. If I have to manifest the entire Susanoo and move it, I will need to concentrate on the different movements of at least 206 different barriers, and that is not including the barriers I used to mimic the muscles, armour, and weapons that I created for it as well. I usually only use the Stage I version of it, the one with only the ribcage and arms. It's a lot easier that way. Elfman's situation required me to go up to at least to Stage II, where the entire armoured upper body is visible."

"That sounds like a lot of work and concentration, El-niichan. No wonder you usually only used simple shapes to manifest your barriers."

"It is, Yukino. Molding my barriers into any shapes beyond simple shapes is a little complicated since my barriers are not supposed to be molded that way. I'm getting better at it now, but I prefer to stick to simple shapes if I can help it."

"El." Mira interjected. "Have you ever went beyond Stage II?"

I paused for a moment as I recalled the one time I ever used it in battle outside of training and I shuddered from the memory. "Yeah, I did, once. It was during my S Class promotion trial when I was unlucky enough to face Gildarts. Stage III is the full body version that is way taller than even the Kardia Cathedral and even then Gildarts somehow managed to destroy half of the construct. Luckily, that technique managed to earn me my S Class title, so I was fine with it." Gildarts is a real monster. Even Laxus will have a lot of difficulty trying to destroy Stage II but Gildarts managed to obliterate at least half of my Full Body Susanoo with his magic. How is he not a Wizard Saint?

A blast of ice would have hit us if it wasn't for my barrier consistently shielding our little group. From where I was, I could see a mixture of ice, fire, swords, plants, lightning, runes, explosions, bickslow's dolls, and many other forms of random magic that blasted around the guild hall.

Huh, Laxus isn't present, yet the rest of the Thunder God Tribe is here. Weird.

"Oh dear, there will be so much to clean up after this." Mira sighed as she took a cloth to wipe the bar table.

"You can always ask El to help stop the guild brawl, Mira-nee. You got him wrapped around your finger."

My left eye twitched. Lisanna kept pushing us to get together as a couple ever since I managed to get Mira out of her depressed funk, and by extension, Elfman's one as well since Mira literally knocked sense into him by bashing him on the head after I got Mira to talk sense into him. I wouldn't mind getting into a relationship with Mira. She's beautiful, not only on the exterior, but in the heart as well. She's warm, caring, and lovely beneath her punk exterior even before she had a drastic change in her personality. It's just that I don't know how Mira felt about me. Interestingly, the fact that my mental age is older than my physical age didn't really bother me. I don't feel the difference. I really couldn't remember much about my past life. I couldn't remember where I lived, my previous age, what I did, and I couldn't even remember my previous name even though I somehow remember quite a fair bit about the Fairy Tail manga series together with other manga series like Naruto, Bleach and One Piece. I probably was an otaku given how socially awkward I am now and the amount of things I can remember about the different manga series that I had read. I didn't dwell too much on it, right now I just want to enjoy my life in this world to the fullest.

My social awkward tendencies are not helping with regards to my "enjoy my life to the fullest" motto. But Mira and her siblings, along with Yukino, are trying very hard to help me to get me to socialise more.

"Lisanna, we are not in that kind of relationship-"

"Everyone started out as friends at first, Mira-nee. You and El are best friends, everyone can see that. There's even a secret betting pool on when you guys are getting together after we completed that mission."

"I say another two months." Yukino said while licking on an ice cream cone she grabbed from the fridge near the bar when we weren't looking.

"Yukino." I said sternly. "You are still too early to learn gambling. Who taught you? Cana?"

"No one taught me." Yukino chirped back happily. "I just observe very closely on what goes on in the guild. But El-niichannnnn, if you really like Mira-nee, go for it! Mira-nee obviously likes you too!"

I could feel my face heating up and I caught a glimpse of Mira's face turning beet red as well.

"Gosh, I can't believe Mira-nee and El are worse than Alzack and Bisca. I'd bet that they will get together even before those two got together. I think I'm losing the bet at this rate." Lisanna said as she put the back of her right hand on her forehead in a dramatic manner.

"I agree with you, Lisanna-nee. But what can we do?! It's against the rules to help them out especially when we already placed our bets!" Yukino wailed dramatically as well.

Our conversation was cut short as Elfman's body was flung into my barriers. He slowly got up from the floor and clutched his head.

"Ouch, that stupid stripper." He saw the awkward expressions on me and Mira's faces and turned to Lisanna and Yukino.

"Guys, what did I miss?"

Lisanna gave a mischievous grin. "Elf-niichan, we were talking about how..."

Screw socialising, I should have stayed at home.

* * *

"Ready?"

Jet gave a huge grin as he prepare to activate his High Speed magic. The rules were simple. Everyone had to start from a starting line and follow an appointed course and return to the finish line within 24 hours. They have to run to the top of Mt Cogen that is on the far west outside Magnolia, obtain a wooden box over there and then return to town. It's going to be easier for him this year as this is the first year where flying magic is banned, meaning that he would have lesser competition from the likes of Happy and Evergreen. No one is allowed to drop out of the race and the last one to return will have to face punishment, not like he will be the one getting punished. He's too fast to lose! He's going to win again this year and impress Levy! Maybe he will get to go on a date with her this year!

"GO!"

With a simple blast of light magic from Master, the race started. Jet activated his magic as he prepared to overtake the crowd. Laxus isn't present for the race this year and he was the closest to beating him thanks to the speed granted by Laxus's Lightning magic. Gildarts was banned from the race ever since he accidentally destroyed a part of the town on the very first race. Besides, Gildarts had left for a 100 year quest a year ago. Jet smiled, he have this win in the bag!

Jet dashed forward in an explosion, aiming to outrun everyone else.

 _BANG!_

Only to collide painfully facefirst into an invisible barrier.

Jet got up from the ground where he fell. What's happening?!

"It's Elden! He stopped us all with a barrier he placed at the starting line!"

True to Reedus's words, a large, formerly transparent barrier shimmered into view as it turned translucent. Jet wasn't the only one to crash into the barrier the moment the race started, majority of the race's participants did as well. It was large enough to prevent anyone to cross the starting line, and too tall for anyone to go over it without flying. The smooth surface of the barrier prevented anyone from climbing it as well. To their frustration, no one can go around the starting line, that would be against the rules that get them a punishment by default.

"Hey Gramps! That's cheating!"

"Well, all forms of magic other than flying magic are allowed, Natsu. Elden didn't break any rules."

Elden gave them a cocky smirk on the other end of the barrier as a horizontal rectangular barrier the size of a door materialised beneath his feet on the ground. Elden crossed his legs as he sat on the barrier beneath him.

"Well, I best be going now. See you guys, have fun."

With a wave, Elden sped off with the barrier he was sitting on that acts like some sort of surfboard that surfs on the ground. He doesn't even have to physically run to complete the race. _He can do that?!_

"COME BACK HERE YOU JERK!"

"WAIT TILL I GET MY HANDS ON YOU! I'M ROASTING YOU ALIVE!"

"YOU CHEATER! GET THE BARRIER OFF!"

"GET THIS BARRIER DOWN OR I WILL FREEZE YOUR ASS OFF! YOU HEAR ME?!"

"THIS IS NOT A MANLY THING TO DO, ELDEN!"

A timer suddenly showed itself on the top of the barrier that displayed 15:00. It slowly counted down.

"What?! We have to wait for 15 minutes before the barrier drop?! We cannot wait that long! Who knows where Elden could be by then!"

"We need to destroy this barrier! Come on guys!'

"Yeah!"

Everyone else who were left behind amped up their magic as they temporarily put aside their differences in this race to get rid of a common obstacle. Jet saw Master wisely taking a few steps back. Jet did the same thing, it would be bad if he got caught in the crossfire as well. His magic is not well suited to get rid of the barrier anyway.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

"Ice-Make: Lance!"

"Dance! My swords!"

"Beast Arm: Iron Bull!"

"Gun Magic: Blast Bullet!"

"Evil Explosion!"

Jet watched as magic of all types blasted into the barrier and a large cloud of smoke was formed from the aftermath of the attacks.

To everyone's horror, the barrier held without a single scratch on it.

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!"

"WHAT IS THAT BARRIER MADE OF?!"

"I DON'T WANT TO WAIT FOR 15 MINUTES HERE! ARGGHH!"

One thing is for sure, Elden had made an enemy of everyone in the guild based on this little stunt alone.

* * *

Even after waiting for 15 minutes for the barrier at the starting line to disappear, Elden still managed to remind everyone of his presence.

Elden had erected many invisible barriers along the appointed route of the race. Nothing as big as the initial one he created, most of it were the size of an ordinary door, but everyone had ran into a small invisible barrier at one point or another during the race. They can go around it easily enough, but running into it hurts, especially when you were running at high speeds.

Jet had lost count how many times his face had collided painfully into the barriers, he was forced to slow down if he doesn't want to permanently disfigure himself.

Why did this only happen this year?! Just when Jet thought that he will undoubtedly be the reigning champion this year, this happens!

Oh right, come to think of it, Elden somehow wasn't here to compete in the previous three races. Where'd he go if he didn't turn up for the race?

Jet finally reached the summit of Mt Cogen and saw numerous little wooden boxes scattered around. He was the second to reach, Elden had probably reached here before he did. Jet picked up the wooden box nearest to him, he found the object he was looking for!

Jet sped off once more after getting the required object. He didn't see Elden at all while he was running here. Where is he? If Elden had already got the wooden box he would have seen him when Elden is on the way back to Magnolia. Had he overtake Elden without realising it?

 _Crash!_

Jet collided once more into another transparent barrier. He cursed as he tried to walk around it, only to realised he was boxed in by four transparent barriers on all four sides.

"Took you long enough."

Jet watched with his mouth opened as Elden appeared from thin air a few feet away on the outside of the barriers while munching on a sandwich. _How did he make himself invisible?!_

Jet banged his fists on the walls of his invisible prison. "You bastard! Let me out of here!"

"Nah, it will disappear when I am far away from here. Use this chance to take a long break. I had a pretty long break myself. It was quite refreshing, you should try it." Elden said as he finished the last of his sandwich and took a swig from his water flask. "Bye, Jet. Have a nice long rest."

Elden sped off with his barrier-surfboard thing once again as Jet howled angrily at him. That bastard!

" **ELDEN!** "

* * *

"And the winner of this year's race is...Elden Tyrell!"

The area where the guild members had congregated fell into an eerie silence. No one clapped as they chose to give Elden the stink eye treatment instead. Everyone had been on the receiving end of one of those barriers at some point during the entire duration of the race. Even his closest friends, the Strauss siblings, were not spared.

"Congrats El-niichan!"

Correction, Yukino was the only one celebrating Elden's victory in the race and was clapping happily, oblivious to the mood of the entire guild.

"Thank you, Yukino." Elden said as he stretched his body with a loud 'pop' that originated from his bones. That bastard didn't even run during the entire race. He just sat down on his makeshift surfboard and let it carry him throughout the entire journey.

Lazy bastard.

"Hey, hey. Who's in the last place this year?" Yukino asked as she bounced up to Elden, her adoptive older brother.

Jet's eyebrow twitched in anger at Yukino's words as he shouted at Elden.

"Elden, you bastard! You told me that your barriers would fall the moment you were far away from me! It didn't disappear at all until the race was nearly over! You caused me to be in the last place!"

"Language, Jet, there are impressionable young children here." Elden replied casually as he covered Yukino's ears with both of his hands. "The barrier didn't fell? How did you get here then?"

"It must have fell together with the rest of your barriers when you dispersed every single one you made the moment you reached the finishing line. I'm surprised that the distance from here to Mt Cogen is not enough for your barriers to fall. The maximum distance in which they can usually manifest themselves is within a certain radius away from you and the maximum distance increases with the increase of your magical reserves. Just how much stronger have you gotten, Elden?" Master commented as he crossed his arms and looked at Elden.

"No clue." Elden gave another one of his shrugs. "I was of the impression that the prison I made for Jet would fall the moment I'm at the halfway mark between Magnolia and Mt Cogen. Sorry about that, Jet. I miscalculated."

The rest of the guild are now listening in curiosity. They had saw the invisible prison that Jet was trapped in at the summit of Mt Cogen. It is not everyday that they have an insight to the powers of one of their most secretive S Class mage even if he made his appearance in their guild a common occurrence. Elden does not participate in the guild brawls nor does he take the initiative to speak to others often. He usually goes on solo missions and even if he went on joint missions, it was with the Strauss siblings or the Thunder God Tribe, which he did not interact much with anymore due to his fallout with Laxus. Not many knew about Elden's capabilities as a mage. Elden is a nice guy, but he is just socially awkward and rarely spoke to anyone else outside of his little group.

"Alright, now I'm all fired up! Come on, El! Fight me!" Natsu proclaimed as he lit himself on fire.

"I have to admit, I'm interested to finally fight another mage with molding magic similar to mine. I don't think we have fought before." Gray said as the temperature around him dropped.

"You guys will have to wait. I'm going first. I want a rematch with Elden."

"No way, Erza! I called first! I get dibs!"

Erza simply fixed Natsu and Gray a demonic stare. "You got a problem?"

"N-no, y-you can g-go first, Erza."

"A-Aye."

Elden gave another cocky smirk that was rarely seen on his face. He clapped his hands once to get everyone's attention.

"I know everyone's a little pissed at me for my barriers, how about this then?" The entire guild perked up at his words. "We go to the large empty clearing at the back of the guild and duke it out there. You guys can all come at me together or one-by-one, I don't care which. You guys can let out some steam in the meantime and we let bygones be bygones after the brawl, regardless of the outcome. Deal?"

"You are _so_ going to regret this, El."

" _Now_ I'm all fired up."

"Talk about cocky. I'm going to wipe off that smirk off your face."

"I'm going to beat you black and blue, you jerk."

"We are going to make you eat your words."

"Now that's a MAN!"

The Master just sighed as he gestured everyone to get to the location Elden had suggested. Might as well just get this over and done with.

* * *

Natsu huffed in exhaustion as the rest of the guild panted and tried to catch their breath around him as well. Only Erza and Mira still looked as if they can continue. The other S Class mages weren't here. Gildarts, Laxus, and Mystogan were on their own individual missions.

Just how strong is El?! Is this the power he needs to achieve to finally be recognised as an S Class mage?

The moment the brawl started, Elden simply surrounded himself with translucent barriers that enclosed themselves around him in a sphere with Elden in the middle. He simply floated a short distance away from the ground using the sphere of barriers surrounding him and beckoned for the rest of the guild to fire their attacks while he proceeded to _nap_ inside the safety of his own barriers.

Elden is still napping inside it without a single scratch on him.

None of the individual attacks by the members of the guild, including Erza and Mira, can put a scratch on Elden's barriers. The barriers are just that tough. They did managed to put a dent or puncture a hole in it when several members combined their attacks, but the barriers mended themselves faster than what they could do to damage it.

The entire guild have exhausted themselves of their magic while Elden is still fresh and snoring away.

"Damn it! Is there any way to get him down from there?!"

"El.. _huff_... _huff_... is a man!"

"Even Erza's and Mira's attacks only managed to put a small hole through it! Elden's barriers are tough!"

"Not to mention that they mend themselves almost immediately afterwards as well."

"Freed! Can your runes do anything?!"

"I'm trying! But they just won't stick onto the barriers! I think Elden-sama coated his barriers with a Dispel spell or sorts! It ruined my runes!"

"Why aren't you guys with Laxus anyway?"

Bickslow gave a shrug as he tried to recover his magic powers. "He said he wanted to go on a solo mission."

"Laxus's attacks can pierce a hole in Elden's defenses, we have seen it before a long time ago. If only we have enough power..." Evergreen trailed off.

Natsu gave a huge grin as a stroke of brilliance struck him.

"Hey guys! That's it! We just need to combine _all_ of our powers to get him down here!"

"That's...surprisingly bright of you, flame-brain. Good job for using that brain of yours." Gray said as he unknowingly started to strip further and took off his trousers.

"Gray...your clothes." Cana said as she placed a hand on her forehead in resignation.

The rest of the guild gathered around as they started to charge up their magic attacks once more, intending to combine their powers to bring that lazy, annoying S Class mage of theirs down from his throne up in the air, even if the throne is merely a translucent sphere made up of barriers.

Elden had woken up as well from the commotion as he stood up from his position and stretched himself.

"Ah, that was a nice nap." He took a look downwards. "So you guys finally decided to combine your attacks?"

"Don't get too cocky, El!" Mira shouted as she transformed with Satan Soul once more.

"Geez, and I thought we were friends, Mira. But I guess I should get serious as well."

The sphere floated back to the ground with Elden still in it. He raised both his hands parallel to the ground, palms opened and facing outwards, as the shape of the barriers changed into a large shield that stood between Elden and the rest of the guild. The shield is very beautifully carved and is shimmering with an ethereal blue. The guild mark is stamped on the center of the shield.

"Barrier-Make: Fairy's Aegis. It's getting late, so let's end this brawl with one final attack. Come on then, let's see if you guys can make a dent on my strongest shield."

The rest of the guild got into their battle stance as Erza led the charge.

"Everyone, on the count of three, we concentrate our attacks on the center of the shield! Three! Two! One!"

"Fire!"

On the count of three, the rest of the guild unleashed their strongest attacks. A large explosive sound reverberated across the clearing when the attacks impacted against the shield. When the resulting cloud of dust cleared slightly, they all whooped in delight as a large part of the shield had cracked and more than half of it was missing.

"Not bad."

The rest of the guild watched as their eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when Elden walked up to them through the smoke with not a scratch or bruise on his body.

"How are you untouched by all of our attacks?!"

"I just moved myself out of the way, Gray, I believe that course of action is categorised under common sense."

"Y-You-"

Natsu pointed an accusing finger at Elden as he tried to find words to retort, but found none. He was not the only one acting like this, several of the other guild members were doing the same action as him.

"Hey, no one said that I couldn't move." Elden gave another one of his annoying shrugs. "I just told you guys to try and see if you can damage my shield, which you all did a spectacular job in doing so. Me standing behind it wasn't part of the deal. I'm allowed to move."

The entire guild was rendered speechless by Elden's logic. He's not wrong, but it was implied that he would stand behind his shield when they attacked! So they did the only thing they could do now and shouted in unison.

"CHEATER!"

* * *

 **AN: The road race is an event that only happens in the anime, and I thought it would be nice to include it in TAOFT as well. I just used the opportunity of the race to display a portion of Elden's powers and to explain a little of how it works, which is the point of this chapter together with adding a bit of FT's shenanigans and humour.**

 **Hoped you enjoyed this chapter.**


	4. Chapter 4- X784

Lucy ran as she chased after Natsu. Mira-san had asked her to help keep an eye on the trouble prone dragon slayer, who had ran off to Mt Hakobe to save Macao.

That idiot! Still, how did he managed to disappear in such a short amount of time?!

"You might want to wear more clothes if you are going to go after Natsu, Mt Hakobe is snowing all year round. Beware of the vulcans as well, they can be quite vicious."

Lucy stopped near the doors of the guild to turn at the direction of the voice who spoke to her.

"Over here."

Lucy looked towards her right where a guy with black hair and eyes was reading a book without looking up at her while speaking. He seemed to be sitting on... air? Lucy would have missed him due to the fact that this guy was sitting in a quiet corner partially hidden by the pillars. Was this the guy that spoke to her? It is her first day here in Fairy Tail, and she didn't think she saw him during the guild brawls she experienced when she first stepped through the doors of the Fairy Tail guild building earlier today.

"T-Thank you."

"No problem, you better get moving soon if you want to catch up to Natsu."

Lucy inwardly cursed as she resumed her run to catch up to Natsu, she will thank her guild mate later, right now she had a pyromaniac dragon slayer to catch up to. That guild mate of hers seemed to share a love for books as well, maybe they can be good friends?

That is a thought for later. Now where can she get some more clothes to ward off the cold while she made her way to Natsu?

* * *

"We are back~~"

"Welcome back, Natsu, Lucy, Happy. From the looks of it, you guys found Macao?"

"We sure did!" Natsu grinned happily as he sat down on a stool where the bar table was. The sun was almost down when they finally returned from Mt Hakobe and returned Macao back to his son, Romeo. Lucy needed to go back to the guild where she had left her backpack to collect it before finding a place to stay for the night. Natsu had offered to let her crash at his place, but Lucy had decided to see if there were other options available.

She had reached the limit of Natsu's antics for one day. It would be preferable to keep a healthy distance away from him at least in the short while

There were still many members of the guild that were loitering around in the guild hall. Lucy looked around, the guy who had gave her good advise earlier today before she went to Mt Hakobe with Natsu isn't present. Had he already left?

"Looking for anyone, Lucy?"

"Ah, Mira-san!" Lucy turned around to address Mira, who had talked to her. "I was just trying to find someone who advised me to grab some extra clothing to wear before going to Mt Hakobe because this guy-" She kicked Natsu on the shin, which he replied with a cry of pain. "-didn't bother to warn me beforehand of the unique climate of the mountain." Lucy huffed. "Thank the stars that I managed to find some clothing on my way there to help keep out the cold."

"How does that person look like?" Mira asked as she continued to serve drinks to the various members of the guild near them that were still loitering around.

"He's about this tall." Lucy gestured with her hands as she tried to remember what that guild mate of hers looked like, he didn't have any notable features other than the colour of his hair and eyes. "He has black hair and eyes, and wears a dark blue jacket on him. I can't really remember much about him other than that. OH! He was reading a book while sitting on air? It's weird but that's how it looks like. He was sitting behind the pillars over there." Lucy completed her description by pointing at the corner where the mysterious man used to occupy.

"Luigi must have meant El!" Happy told Mira while holding up his paws. "Only El floats around while reading books!"

"ARGH! That reminds me!" Natsu suddenly stood up in agitation while bathing himself in flames once more. "Mira! Where's El?! I want a rematch!"

Mira simply gave another smile as she raised one hand to cover her mouth as if trying to hold back her laughter. "El just went on a long mission with Yukino, Natsu. You won't see them for quite some time ranging from weeks to months."

Lucy ignored Natsu's screams of frustration as he walked off to start another guild brawl. She turned to Mira instead. "Mira-san, so that guy that helped me is called El?"

"His name is Elden Tyrell, to be exact. All of us here just called him El." Mira said with a loving smile as she handed a drink to Lucy.

"Aye! And he's Mira's boyfriend! They are in _looooooovveeeee_." Happy chimed in as he ate his fish that he took out from his backpack.

"WHAT?! How did no one know about this?! It's not reported in the Sorcerer!" Lucy exclaimed as she leaned in closer to Mira.

Mira laughed out loud as she moved to sit beside Lucy. "It's not something we liked to publicise to the world, Lucy, we like our privacy. But if you want to know, it has been that way for nearly two years now. The guild helps by keeping it a secret for us. My fans would probably be in an uproar if they knew about my relationship status, I trust that you will do the same as well? Please?"

Lucy nodded in acknowledgment as she took a sip of her drink. She can see why Mira did what she did. Mira is often a model for the Sorcerer Magazine and she has a large fanbase. Hell would be raised if anyone from the public knew that she had entered into a relationship. She can say goodbye to a life of peace and quiet.

"What's he like? Your boyfriend, I mean. He must be pretty special if he caught your eye. How did he managed to woo you?" Lucy's eyes sparkled in excitement at the thought of getting such a juicy piece of news. She have first hand information on one of the most beautiful models in Fiore!

"Mira wooed him, actually." Happy remarked as he continued to munch on his fish without looking up. "They were good friends for a loooong time, but El is a very shy guy back then. He still is, but it's a lot better now. He definitely won't strike up a conversation with you like that if it was two years ago. Mira got fed up and demanded if he wanted her to be his girlfriend, which he agreed."

Mira put a hand up to her cheek as she had a dreamy expression on her face. "Ah, those were good times. El can be infuriating like that. He's a recluse, but he's got a good heart. He just needs a little encouragement to come out of his shell. El can be very romantic actually."

Lucy eagerly listened to Mira as she digested the news internally. Elden Tyrell? That name does ring a bell...where had she heard it before?

"What's wrong, Luigi?" Happy had finished eating his fish as he raised a paw to pat her on the arm.

"IT'S LUCY! STOP CALLING MY NAME WRONG ON PURPOSE!"

Lucy turned to look at Happy, who had now hid half his body behind Mira while doing a faux trembling of his entire body and put on a pitiful look. "Mira...Luigi's scary..."

"YOU DAMN KITTY CAT!"

* * *

It had been an enjoyable two months in Fairy Tail. Lucy had went on various missions with Natsu and some of the other members. She also met more members like Lisanna, Levy, Jet, Droy and many others. They were fun to spend time with despite the destructive tendencies displayed by most members of the guild. She had also just got herself a golden zodiac key from the mission on Galuna Island and she cannot stop fawning over it.

Life is good.

Lucy made idle talk with Erza, Natsu, Gray and Happy as she tried to explain the rarity of the 12 golden zodiac keys. They had just completed the mission on Galuna Island and the group had reached the edge of Magnolia. To her surprise, they seemed to know about this information already, even though Celestial Spirit magic is a rare form of magic.

"Yeah, we know. Yukino's a Celestial Spirit mage like you too. You two are the only Celestial Spirit mages in our guild." Gray replied offhandedly. Upon seeing Lucy's shocked expression, Gray inquired further. "You didn't see her in the guild?"

"She's on a long mission with El, squinty eyes, won't be back for quite some time."

"What do you call me? Ash-for-brains?!"

"Come fight me, popsicle!"

A fist to both of their heads silenced the bickering duo, courtesy of Erza. She looked to Lucy before speaking.

"I'm surprised you didn't know about Yukino, Lucy. I thought Mira, Elfman, or Lisanna would have talked to you about Yukino. Yukino may not be related to them by blood, but they treat her like their own little sister. They looked really alike too."

"Aye! Yukino have a few of those golden keys as well! One of them are a pair of _fish_!" Happy said the last sentence while drooling from the thought of eating such big fishes.

"W-WHAT?! There's another Celestial Spirit mage in Fairy Tail? And I don't know about it? She also has a few of the zodiac keys?!" Lucy's heart dipped a little in disappointment. She had wanted to collect all twelve of the zodiac keys, seems like it is impossible now.

"I think little Yuki-chan have like...three of those golden keys?" Natsu said as he adopted a thinking pose. "A human-cat, a weird lady, and a pair of fish. The cat is actually pretty strong too."

Cat? Does that mean the gate of the lion, Leo? A pair of fish? That has to be Pisces!

"I think you would get along well with Yukino, Lucy. She loves her spirits just as much as you do." Gray commented as he continued to walk forward

Erza stopped to turn around to face the rest of the group. "Enough talk. Now...let's get to the guild and decide on your punishment."

"AH! We forgot about that!"

* * *

 _N-No way..._

It's all her fault. If only she didn't run away from home, this wouldn't have happened to Fairy Tail! Team Shadowgear wouldn't have got injured, Master wouldn't be in critical condition, members of the guild wouldn't have been injured in the fight with the Phantoms, and that... that _thing_ wouldn't be making its way towards the guild hall now!

"Wha-What is that...?"

"Is it...Phantom?!"

"The guild is walking..."

Erza had rushed out of the bathrooms clad in only a towel around her body. Like the rest of the guild, she stared at the walking monstrosity in shock.

"I never imagined...they'd attack us like this."

"What should we do?!"

A large cannon appeared at the front of the walking guild hall of Phantom Lord and Fairy Tail watched as it began to charge up magical energy to fire a blast of condensed magical energy onto their guild hall.

"THIS IS BAD! EVERYBODY, GET DOWN!" Erza screamed out loud as she dashed to the front of the guild hall.

"Erza!"

"What are you going to do?!"

"Get back here! Erza!"

The members of Fairy Tail watched in a mixture of shock and amazement as Erza requipped into an armour with many thick metal plates as she screamed for the rest of Fairy Tail to get down. Lucy idly noted that one of the members called it the Herculean Armour.

The cannon from Phantom Lord fired as everyone covered their heads and lay prone onto the ground. Many of them were trying to use their own bodies to shield the other members. Elfman was trying to cover Mira, and Gray was holding onto Natsu to prevent him from running up to Erza, who had decided to shield the blast from the Fairy Tail's guild hall and the members behind her.

Lucy and the rest of Fairy Tail watched as the blast of condensed magical energy got closer and closer to Erza. If it hit her...

"Erzaaaa!"

"Damn it Natsu, stop moving! Have faith in Erza!"

It was then a miracle happened.

"Everyone get down! Erza! Leave it to me! **BARRIER-MAKE: FAIRY GATES!** "

Lucy watched in amazement as five set of doors, each looking exactly like the ones that guard Fairy Tail's guild hall, appeared in a straight row in front of Erza and stood in the way between the blast of energy from the cannon and their scarlet haired mage. The door seemed to be made up of some ethereal solid construct that shimmered in gold as it stood proud and tall against the attack.

"IT'S ELDEN! HE'S BACK!"

"WE ARE SAVED!"

"GO ELDEN! GO ERZA! SHOW THEM WHO'S BOSS!"

The members of Fairy Tail watched as the blast of magical energy obliterated the first set of doors and proceeded to destroy the second set, and the third, and the fourth. But each time the blast of condensed magic hit one of those walls it will lose its power and its momentum slowed down significantly. The attack hit the final set of doors as it creaked and groaned against the strain it faced from the attack. Cracks started to appear on the doors as Lucy saw Erza bracing herself from the impending attack, intending to use herself as a human shield if necessary.

Erza's help wasn't needed.

The final set of doors held, Erza and the rest of Fairy Tail remained untouched by the blast.

"YAHOO!"

"WE DID IT!"

Loud shouts of joy could be heard as everyone celebrated their success in surviving that blast. Was that the power of Elden Tyrell, one of the S Class mages of Fairy Tail? Lucy had asked Mira a little about him ever since he found out that Mira was dating _the_ Aegis of Fairy Tail, an elusive member that even the famed reporter, Jason, did not managed to take a picture of him. However, words of his powers spread far and wide across Fiore, and he was recognised as one of the strongest mages in Fairy Tail.

A black haired man wearing a dark blue jacket floated down from the air with a young white-bluish haired girl, which looked about 11 years of age, in front of the guild members with their backs facing them. The man looked visibly drained as he nearly stumbled onto the ground upon landing, and it was only when the young girl supported him did he avoid a faceplant onto the ground.

" _Huff..huff_... is everyone alright? Erza? You ok?"

"We are alright thanks to you. But what about you?! Are you ok?!"

The black haired man, which Lucy recognised to be the same man who had gave her that friendly advice on her first day in Fairy Tail waved away Erza's concerns as he stood up shakily.

This is Elden Tyrell, the Aegis of Fairy Tail.

"I'm fine, just give me a while to catch my breath. I'm glad I made it in time. Is that really Phantom Lord?!"

"It is." Erza responded as she requipped back into her Heart Kreuz Armour. "There will be a second wave soon, get ready."

"EL! YUKINO!"

Lucy watched as the Strauss siblings ran up to the duo and Mira quickly checked them over for any signs of injury.

"We are fine, Mira. We need to focus on the enemy now. What do we know about them? What are our forces?"

Mira bit her lower lip as she held onto Elden. "They ambushed Team Shadowgear and they are injured and resting. Master's critically injured and he is at Porlyusica's. They are after Lucy, our newest guild member. There are many injured members as well. We had attacked one of the Phantom's hideout previously where Master got himself injured and we were forced to retreat."

Elden muttered something inaudible under his breath before their attention was taken away by something else.

A loud voice boomed over the speakers from Phantom Lord's guild hall. The voice was unmistakably Jose's.

"You don't stand a chance. Hand over Lucy Heartphilia right **now**."

A wave of protests emerged from the Fairy Tail members as they defended Lucy, who tried to hold back her tears from such display of supportive actions from her guild members. What did she do to deserve such wonderful people?

"WE'D RATHER DIE THAN GIVE UP ON OUR COMRADE!" Erza screamed at Jose.

"OUR ANSWER WON'T CHANGE NO MATTER WHAT! WE WILL TAKE YOU DOWN!" Natsu roared at Jose, visibly angered by the audacity of Jose's demands.

"I see..." Jose replied with a hint of rage in his deceptively calm voice. "Then we'll fire an even bigger and stronger Jupiter! NOW STRUGGLE IN THIS 15 MINUTE TERROR UNTIL IT'S RELOADED!"

"What?!"

"Jupiter...They'll...fire it again?!"

"El could stop one of those, but he can't block them forever!"

"Look! Their soldiers are coming out!"

"No way! Aren't they just going to fire Jupiter?"

"Feel the pain, Fairy Tail. You have two choices." Jose's sickening voice could be heard loud and clear once again. "Get killed by my soldiers, or die by Jupiter."

"Impossible...is he going to kill his men with Jupiter as well? H-He's just threaten-"

"Oh for the love of Mavis. **Shut up**. You overgrown **clown**."

Elden stood up confidently as Mira supported his shaky form by his side, he probably is still trying to recover from a sudden loss of his magic when he used it to defend the guild. A powerful surge of magical energy swept through the area around him as the air around him distorted. Elden made his way to the front of Fairy Tail with help from Mira as he looked to Phantom Lord's guild hall.

"A clown like you would never understand the meaning of a guild. That will be your downfall." Ethereal constructs appeared around him and Mira. This time they shone an otherworldly blue. The constructs materialised in a form similar to a rib cage as skeletal arms grew on its side. "We are Fairy Tail. We protect our own and we don't bow to anyone, and certainly not to a clown that only knows how to parade around flaunting the mascara on his face." Cheers could be heard from the rest of the guild as the construct grew a skeletal head as well, before more constructs that looked like muscle fibers filled out the bones rapidly. "Like what Natsu said, we will take you down, and you are going down **hard**."

The ethereal construct with only its upper body visible screeched as it continue to grow in size. A layer of skin grew over it before a set of armour materialised over it and the ethereal warrior held a crossbow in its hands with a huge arrow loaded on it, primed and ready to fire.

"We choose neither of your options, and we certainly don't need fucking 15 minutes to take your Jupiter cannon down. You and your lackeys might want to step aside, by the way. I don't want to stain my hands with your filthy blood in case I accidentally kill any of you."

The ethereal construct fired the large arrow towards the Jupiter cannon at high speeds and Lucy watched in amazement as the arrow destroyed the cannon and continue to pierce through and emerged from the other end of the Phantom Lord guild hall before dissipating into thin air.

"There, you have our answer. _Clown_."

"Y-You...YOU WILL BE THE FIRST ONE I KILL, YOU VERMIN!"

Jose's shades swarmed out from the Phantom Lord guild hall towards Fairy Tail. It won't be long before they reached the guild hall. The Phantom Lord's guild also visibly transformed into a humanoid gigantic robot much to the horror of Fairy Tail, and it is making its way here.

"Alright! Everyone listen up!" Elden turned around to face the rest of Fairy Tail as his voice took on an authoritative tone, cutting off their stares towards the gigantic robot. "Macao! Wakaba! Go to the basement and grab whatever lacrima bombs you can find in the guild's basement! I know they are still there! You guys will be in charge of our artillery! Get more people with you if you need help! Alzack! Bisca! You guys will be in charge of the defense on the left side! Cana! You will be in charge of the right side! Natsu! Gray! Elfman! Erza! I need you to go up there to Phantom Lord and destroy the Element Four! Happy! Go with Natsu! I will stay with Mira here to help in defending the guild! All of you stay away from Jose! None of you are capable of fighting him! Just make sure to bring down the Element Four! Lucy, whoever you are! You are with me and Mira! Jose cannot snatch you away from right under our eyes! Warren! You are with me as well! We need your powers to link with everyone! Make sure you establish a connection for Erza's group for them to be able to contact each other! Mira and I will defend the center! The rest of you, split yourselves! Either help Macao and Wakaba, or help in the defense on the right and left sides, or the center! Now, MOVE!"

"Don't worry about us going up to Phantom Lord's building, Elden. We will win." Erza said to Elden as she ran off with the others who also were tasked to bring the Element Four down.

"Stay safe, Erza. The rest of you too."

"Don't worry about that, we will kick their ass!"

"AYE!"

"Time to be a MAN!"

"I will just freeze their ass off."

Seeing that their small but elite attack force running off towards the Phantom's building, the rest of Fairy Tail burst into a flurry of movements as they split themselves up equally. Some of them ran back to the guild's basement with Macao and Wakaba, some of them organised the defenses with the temporary leaders that Elden had appointed. Lucy ran up to where Mira and Elden was. Elden had slumped a little after the speech, looking drained.

"El! You need to rest! You lost too much magic! You cannot fight a war after pulling off your best techniques like that! Leave the fighting to me!"

Elden merely shook his head. "Like you said, this is a war, Mira. There is no rest. Either we live or we die, Jose won't show mercy." He briefly hugged Mira and gave a light kiss on her forehead. "I will do my best to stay alive, so you better do the same too."

Mira just gave Elden a tight hug before pulling away, with a steely gaze in her eyes. Any of her usual cheery demeanor is now gone. Right now Mira isn't the cheerful barmaid, but the she-demon and S Class mage of Fairy Tail.

"We're ready to help too, El-niichan!"

Elden merely patted the young girl who was with him fondly on the head as she walked up to him together with Lisanna.

"Just promise me you will stay safe, Yukino. Call out Loke or Ophiuchus if you need to. If you are in any danger or cannot continue fighting any longer, retreat to safety, understood?"

"Don't worry, El. I will keep an eye on Yukino."

"Thanks, Lisanna."

Elden turned to face Lucy, who was watching their interactions a short distance away, and Elden looked at her with a smile in his eyes. "You must be Lucy. I don't think this is the best time to do introductions, but I am Elden. Just call me El. Make sure that you stay behind me and Mira or be in our line of sight at all times. Don't worry, we will win this, and then we can all go back home together."

Lucy trembled as she tried very hard not to cry. Lisanna wrapped her arms around her in a comforting hug.

"Everything's fine, Lucy. You can stay with me or Yukino during the fight! She's a Celestial Sprit mage like you too! It would be interesting to watch!"

"Really?!" The young girl, now identified as Yukino, perked up at Lisanna's words. "You are a Celestial Spirit mage too?! How many-"

"They are coming. Prepare yourselves."

Fairy Tail prepared themselves as the waves of shades got closer and closer to them. The giant robot lumbered up from behind the shades.

"Tsk...if only my magical reserves were full, I can pull off a Stage III and destroy that stupid robot."

"Hush, dear. Just concentrate on the shades for now, and hope that Elfman and the others will defeat the Element Four."

"He will win, Mira. He had already mastered the Full Body Take Over. The rest will win their battles too. They are strong."

"I know."

Small diamond shaped barriers as thin as than paper appeared around Elden. They are glowing in pink, similar to the petals of sakura petals, and are roughly the size of fingernails. They appeared by the thousands and part of them swirled around Elden and the other part surrounded Yukino and Lucy as well. It looks as if they are surrounded in a field of falling sakura petals.

"Yukino, Lucy. Stay within the petals and fight from there. Your spirits can do the fighting for you on the outside of my barriers. Make sure you stay safe."

Any further conversations were cut off as the first wave of shades were near enough to clash with the Fairy Tail members that made up their front lines any moment now. Elden walked up to the front once again with huge mass of the pink petals swirling angrily around him as he whispered the name of his technique.

"Barrier-Make: Senbonzakura."

* * *

 **AN: So yeah, I took the idea of an offensive attack using barriers from Bleach. Canon has now started and we can start to see the changes that Elden's presence have in the FT verse. Mira and Elden have officially paired up in this chapter as well.**

 **Let me know what you think, and I hoped you enjoyed this chapter.**


	5. Chapter 5- We Are Fairy Tail After All

The rest of Fairy Tail who stayed behind to defend their guild and Lucy watched in shock at what was happening in front of their eyes.

 _This...this is the power of an S Class mage._

When the Fairy Tail members were organised into separate defense forces by Elden and prepared themselves to fight with their lives on the line, they expected to shed blood and fight a bloody battle. The battle had arrived, but none of the blood were spilt from their bodies yet.

Because Elden is there.

The mass of the swirling pink petals that were actually thousands of tiny diamond shaped barriers sliced into Jose's shades without mercy, not letting the shades going past Elden and his petal-like barriers. Fairy Tail watched as Elden simply walked into the mass of shades and waved his hands to command the petals, who obeyed his every command and slashed, pierced, and ripped the shades to shreds. More and more of these petals were formed and now a massive pink wall of them were raining down on the shades.

The rest of Fairy Tail weren't idle either. They launched attacks of their own to aid their perpetually lazy, socially awkward but absurdly strong guild mate in the battle against the massive army of Jose's shades. Macao and Wakaba had returned with a huge number of lacrima bombs together with some of the other members who went to help them, and the bombs they threw cleared a large number of the shades as well.

The gigantic robot that is also the Phantom Lord's building had stopped midway in its charge to draw a magical seal in midair with one of its robotic fingers.

"I will be damned, that's an Abyss Break! Is Jose crazy?!"

"If such a huge seal went off, it will destroy everything up to the Kardia Cathedral!"

"CALM DOWN!"

Fairy Tail members stopped their mouths from running while still firing their attacks and looked towards Elden, who is still busy destroying Jose's shades and had shouted at them over all the noise.

"Use your brain for once! Such a huge spell has to find power from somewhere! Abyss Break is a four elemental forbidden spell, which are fire, water, wind, and earth respectively! What does the Phantom Lord have?! They have the Element Four! Warren! Contact Erza and the others! I think it's safe to say that to take out that Abyss Break, they need to first defeat the Element Four, or find the device that is powering the spell using the Element Four's powers! Tell them to hurry!"

"Got it! I'm on it!" Warren said as he tried to communicate with Erza's group with telepathy while he was being protected by the mass of pink petal barriers that were surrounding Yukino and Lucy as well.

Elden continued to shout at Fairy Tail while decimating Jose's shades. "Just focus on the shades first, have trust in Erza and the others! If they can wreck our guild hall on a daily basis, they can easily destroy Phantom's as well!" Elden half-joked as he commanded some of his petals to swirl in a furious tornado, and sent them towards a huge wave of shades like a moving blender, ripping the shades to shreds.

A roar of laughter washed across the Fairy Tail members as they renewed their attacks and continued to help defend their guild hall. Like what Elden said, all they have to do is to place their trust in their guild mates. They will win this.

Fairy Tail can win this.

* * *

 _" **Finally**! Erza! Natsu! Gray! Elfman! I have been trying to contact you guys for ages! Listen very carefully! There is a crisis and you guys are the only ones who can stop it! This is what you need to do..."_

 _"...So we just need to defeat the Element Four? I just beat that Toto-something guy! That's one down! I think I smelt that metal bastard! So I'm going there right now to kick his ass!"_

 _"Well done, Natsu. I am still searching for a member of the Element Four. How about the rest of you?"_

 _"Huff..huff.. Elfman here. I just defeated Sol, I think that was the bastard's name anyway. He's definitely a member of the Element Four as well, he uses Earth magic."_

 _"I am currently fighting the water one! Get back to you later! Ice-Make: Lance!"_

 _"Good job guys! The speed at which the giant robot is drawing the seal is obviously slowing down! Keep it up! Warren over and out!"_

Erza gritted her teeth as she ran through the empty corridors of the Phantom Lord building. Only Aria of the Element Four is unaccounted for. If she can find and defeat him, then Fairy Tail and Magnolia Town will be saved.

An unnatural swirl of wind immediately put Erza on guard as she faced the source of the wind.

"How sad..."

A weirdly dressed man with blindfolds around his eyes appeared before Erza while crying profusely. Erza didn't let the man's behaviour throw her off balance as she kept up her guard. This man is an S Class mage of Phantom Lord.

Aria took a battle stance as his tears stopped, and took on a battle stance.

"I am called Aria...pinnacle of the Element Four. I have come to slay the queen of fairies, Titania."

Erza summoned a sword in her hand and took her own battle stance as well.

"You were the guy that dared touch our Master?"

"Indeed I am. If I am going to fight against the Titania..." Aria raised both his hands to take down his blindfold. "Even I shall have to take this fight seriously."

Aria's eyes shone with a huge surge of increase in magic as he looked at Erza with a stare that seems to consume life.

"Come at me, Erza. I have activated the airspace of death, "Zero". This airspace consumes all life. Now, let us have some fun."

* * *

"The spell is firing!"

"Everybody get down!"

"This isn't the sort of magic we can survive by ducking our heads!"

I stared up at the seal of Abyss Break as my Senbonzakura technique sliced up Jose's shades. Was it too late? Have my presence somehow changed canon for the worse? Will my fellow guild mates die simply because I was brought here into this world?

I have forgotten that X784 is the fateful year where canon started. I should have remembered when I saw Lucy joined the guild. Due to my forgetfulness, Levy, Jet, and Droy have gotten injured, so did Master Makarov and many of our nakama, because I wasn't there with them to help prevent _this_ from happening.

I can't remember how Abyss Break was stopped in canon, but looking at how Abyss Break is about to fire at any moment now, it probably means that Erza and the others have failed to defeat the Element Four in time. My intervention had somehow made everything worse.

If that's the case, then it's my responsibility to fix my mistake, even if I have to die trying.

Using the faux petals of Senbonzakura to form a protective dome around me, I prepared to use the largest defensive technique I know that can save everyone in the guild. However, at my current state where I am running on fumes with my magical reserves, thanks to the use of Fairy Gates, it will probably consume my life as the price for invoking this technique.

 _Mira, Yukino, I'm sorry._

"El? what are you doing?! Don't you dare use what I think you are going to do!"

I ignored Mira's words as I began to charge up the remnants of my magic power to ridiculous levels. Mira tried to fly into the dome which I erected with Satan Soul, but was pushed back by the barrier of petals.

"Barrier-Make: Fairy-"

"EL!"

* * *

Mirajane watched as Elden forcefully increased his magical powers while she could do nothing to help him or to save her guild mates.

Elden is trying to use his life as the price for invoking a spell that can help shield the entire guild.

"EL!"

With a desperate scream, Mirajane tried once more to push herself past the barrier of pink petals, ignoring the cuts on her arms as she tried to use them to push past the barrier. The barrier merely bounced her out of there. The light from the activation of the Abyss Break spell shone with a bright light as Elden's magic powers continued to rise.

Just as when everyone thought that all is lost, the Abyss Break spell suddenly stopped its activation. The magical seal suddenly disappeared as the right arm of the gigantic robot fell off from the main body and dropped to the ground.

The crisis has been averted.

"It stopped! Abyss Break has been stopped!"

"Natsu and the others did it!"

Mirajane ignored the relieved cries of her guild mates as she swooped down to retrieve her boyfriend. Elden had forcefully cancelled his magic to prevent it from consuming his life the moment he saw that Abyss Break has been stopped. However, magic isn't meant to be forcefully stopped like that, doing so has its consequences. Elden's barriers of pink petals has disappeared as well and he was forced onto his knees in exhaustion. The shades are closing in on him.

"Soul Extinctor!"

With a blast of magic, Mirajane wiped out a huge part of the shades around Elden as she carried him away from the area. The other members of Fairy Tail aided her to get Elden to safety as they fired their own attacks to cover their escape. Some of them rushed up to the front lines where Elden used to be to prevent the shades from getting closer to their guild building.

"Mira-nee!"

Mirajane flew to where her sisters were where they were protected by Elden's powers a few moments ago. The pink barriers around them had disappeared as well.

"El-niichan! El-niichan!"

"Yu...kino. You alright?"

"Worry about yourself first! Dummy! Don't scare us like that again! If you used that technique..." Mirajane trailed off. She doesn't want to think about what could have happened. Elden could have died.

Elden looked at Mirajane, Yukino, and Lisanna in silence before he tried to get up from where he was laying on the ground.

"You should rest, El! Leave the fighting to us! You are already worn out!"

"Don't worry, Lisanna, I always have a backup plan. How did you think I managed to gather that much magic in that short few seconds? I learnt quite a bit of Rune magic from Freed when I was still in the Thunder God Tribe. I stored extra magic that I had accumulated over the years into the runes I tattooed on my body, it's useful if you really need some extra magic power when you are in a pinch. They are like extra rechargeable batteries."

"That's what the runes are for?!" Mirajane shouted in surprise. She had seen the runes inked across Elden's torso when they were having... _sexy_ times. Mirajane's face blushed slightly at the thought before she squashed it back down. Elden never said anything about it and she never asked. Elden would always tell her if there are important things that she should know. If he doesn't, it means that the issue wasn't important.

She needs to have a long discussion with Elden about the definition of what's important and what's not the moment they got out of this crisis.

True to Elden's words, his magical reserves began to replenish at a rapid rate too fast for it to be natural although it only barely reaches a quarter of his usual capacity. Elden stood up once again, but this time he found that he can only create barriers of simple shape, and the barriers are obviously a lot more brittle.

Elden has to be really worn out for this to happen.

"Urgh, guess I'm really out of it. Facing a Jupiter cannon and a member of the Wizard Saint wasn't on my to-do list for today. Warren, what's the sit-rep up there for Erza and the others?"

"They defeated all of the Element Four! Natsu is fighting Gajeel! I'm still trying to link with Erza and the rest, there is something up in their building that is consistently trying to block my telepathy...fuck."

"Warren? What happened?" Lisanna asked in concern. Warren isn't one to swear like that often.

"Erza...together with Gray and Elfman...Jose found them. They are fighting Jose."

Mirajane felt her heart dropped as she paused in firing her attacks towards the group of shades making their way towards them.

 _Elfman! He's in danger!_

"Mira, we should go. Erza and co. needs all the help they can get."

"I will go! You stay here! You are still too weak to fight! Not after everything you had done!"

"I have enough magic to provide some defensive support for you guys. Defending is my forte after all. I can at least help to prevent you guys from taking serious damage. I'm an S Class mage as well, I have been through worse." Elden stood his ground as he looked at Mira resolutely. "Look, we can stay here and argue all day. But Elfman and the rest needs our help. Please, Mira. Let's go together." Elden changed his tone into a pleading tone.

Mira clenched her fists. Why does Elden always have to be right?!

"Alright, but you are staying behind me. I'm the only S Class now that hasn't been involved in a serious battle yet, I can hold Jose off better than you can right now."

"Yes Ma'am. Lisanna, I'm leaving the defenses here to you. Protect Lucy and the guild."

"I will. Stay safe, Mira-nee, El."

Mirajane picked Elden up with a single hand and flew towards the Phantom Lord building. Erza's magic signature shone as bright as day, and is a big enough beacon for her to find.

The couple announced their entrance with an explosion to the walls of the Phantom Lord building, and saw the guild master of Phantom Lord blasting their nakamas with his sickly magic.

"Mira! El!" Gray called out to them as he tried to block Jose's attacks.

Elden quickly conjured a large pane of rectangle barrier that blocked the onslaught of Jose's attacks on Erza, Gray, and Elfman. It bought them enough time to regroup. Mirajane and Erza stood at the front with Gray and Elfman on their left and right side respectively. Elden stood in the back. He is in no condition to be involved in a frontal battle. Providing defensive support is all he is capable of doing right now.

"Elfman, you alright?"

"I'm fine, nee-chan! But it's too dangerous here! Get-"

"I'm staying, that's final. I am an S Class mage of Fairy Tail."

"Just listen to her, Elfman. None of us here can win an argument against Mira when she's in she-demon mode." Elden answered casually, but the tired look in his eyes betrayed the cool and calm exterior he is showing. Elfman hasn't seen Elden being pushed to this extent before, even when they went on joint missions.

Mirajane looked to her ex-rival and Gray. Erza seems to be a little beaten up and so is Gray, but they are otherwise ok.

"Ah, so this is the Demon and Aegis of Fairy Tail. I have to say, I'm impressed that you are still able to stand and fight even after blocking the Jupiter cannon and destroying it in a single attack." He directed the last part of his speech to Elden, who looked at him impassively. "Titania, Demon, and Aegis, your magical abilities are truly magnificent. DEAD WAVE!"

Jose extended his right hand sideways as he generated several ghosts around it in a spiral, he then released it in a destructive wave of Darkness magic at the Fairy Tail mages.

"Don't falter, I will block it."

Another rectangular pane of barrier appeared in front of the Fairy Tail group as Jose's attack connected, kicking up a huge cloud of dust. Jose cleared the dust with a single wave of his hand, but the Fairy Tail mages were nowhere to be seen.

"Ice-Make: Hammer!"

A large hammer made of ice fell down from above onto Jose, which he simply sent a wave of his magic to destroy it. A huge beast rammed itself into him, only for Jose to grab its fist and tossed it over his shoulder without much thought. Numerous swords rained at him which Jose simply side-stepped, only to find that he couldn't do so. He looked at his feet, which was grabbed by ethereal chains during the chaos and anchored him to the ground from below.

"Got you now."

The swords tried to pierce Jose as he immediately fired off another huge blast of his magic at them, destroying a huge portion of it. A few of them got through his attacks and sliced at him, one even managed to nick a cut on his cheek.

"YOU-"

Jose's rant was cut off as a dark blast of magic attacked him from behind. He brushed it off as he saw a winged demon throwing another attack at him and Jose quickly freed his feet from the chains.

"Jellyfish form!"

Several of Jose's shades merge together to form a strong, large, jellyfish-like ghost with many arms and it floated high up in the air and used its many fists to attack.

"Take this, Fairy Tail!"

A human-sized rectangular pane appeared in front of each of the Fairy Tail members that were facing Jose, blocking the fists that the jellyfish shade is raining down on the Fairy Tail members. Jose bristled in anger. The Aegis of Fairy Tail had screwed up his plans more than once for today, and is proving to be an annoying pest.

He will be the first to go down.

"Dark Pulse!"

With a war cry, Jose moves his hand in an arc before him, engulfing the area that his hand passed through in an explosion and sent his attack solely at Elden.

"Elden!"

Elden remained calm as he raised many door-sized rectangular barriers in front of him in a straight row that stood in front of Jose's attacks. Jose's attacks crashed into the barriers and obliterated them in a single blast, Elden was nowhere to be seen when the blast subsided.

"EL!" Jose watched in satisfaction as the Ice mage yelled out in worry and rage. That's one pest exterminated, four more to go.

"Relax, Gray, focus on the clown. Barrier-Make: Pillar."

A large rectangular block suddenly materialised above Jose and smashed onto him at high speeds as he was forced to defend himself. It was too late to dodge. With a frustrated shout and a surge in magic, Jose cracked the pillar and sent a huge blast of magic outwards, forcing the Fairy Tail mages to run for cover.

"The hell? He escaped my sneak attack? I was sure it could get him too."

"Your attacks have lost a lot of power since you are worn out, El. I'm not surprised."

Jose turned as he saw that the rest of the Fairy Tail mages had regrouped once again. The Barrier-Make mage is still alive and stood behind his allies.

"Our guild!" Erza cried out.

The rest of the Fairy Tail mages turned to look through the huge hole in the wall as they saw that the gigantic robot they are currently in tearing into the Fairy Tail's building with its other working arm. The rest of the Fairy Tail members were scattered as they ran from the falling debris and the shades that had pushed past their line of defense. Fairy Tail's defense has been breached and their building is in shambles.

"YOU SON OF A BITCH!"

"STOP IT!"

"WE WILL KILL YOU FOR THIS!"

Jose laughed hysterically at the reactions of the Fairy Tail mages as he continued to blast them with his shades. The five mages that were facing him in combat were forced to be on the run as Elden tried to block the attacks that might have seriously injured his allies.

"Do you understand why I never killed Makarov outright?" Jose said as one of his attacks managed to catch Elden off guard and sent him flying into the nearest wall. The she-demon tried to help him but was sent crashing into the ground by another of Jose's attacks.

"Despair!" Jose exclaimed as he punched the Ice-Make mage in the gut, knocking him out of the battle. "It was to show him despair!" Jose's fist met those of the beast as he engaged in a fist fight with the monster and overwhelmed it in an impressive show of physical strength. A roundhouse kick sent the monster flying and it reverted back into the form of the large Take Over mage. "How would he feel to open his eyes and find his beloved guild and his beloved nakama all completely destroyed?!" Jose roared in laughter as he gestured outside to the fallen Fairy Tail's guild building, which is now completely reduced to rubble. "Ahahah..such sorrow he would feel!" Jose continued his mad laughter as he engaged Erza in combat, who is the only one still standing as she weaved through his onslaught and slashed at him. "I will kill that man only once I have made him know despair and sorrow! I cannot simply kill him! I must make him SUFFER, SUFFER, SUFFER TO THE VERY END!"

"You disgusting..."

Jose cut off Erza's reply. "Phantom lord was always the number one guild...in the entire country, our magic, talents, and funds were unsurpassed! But then, within a few years, Fairy Tail came to power. Erza, Laxus, Mystogan, Gildarts, Mirajane, Elden, and even the rumours of salamander spread across the country!" He launched another Dead Wave at Erza. "I cannot stand it! THEM! Who started out as a shitty and pathetically weak little guild!"

Jose was interrupted as the she-demon rejoined the fight as she attacked Jose with her own variant of Darkness magic.

"So that's it?! You started this fight out of jealousy? For such a stupid reason like that?!"

Jose kicked Mirajane aside as he blocked Erza's swords with his jellyfish.

"Oh, you guys have been on my nerves for a long time, but the trigger for this war was a small matter. You see, we receive a request to recover the young heiress of the Heartphilia." Jose swung his shades that had elongated from his hand like a whip and caught Erza. "The daughter of one of the wealthiest men in the country joined your guild! If you had free access to the Heartphilia funds, then your power would have exceeded our own! AND THAT WAS THE ONE THING THAT I COULD NEVER FORGIVE!"

"Barrier-Make: Cone!"

A large triangular cone that spun like a drill attempted to ram itself into Jose with its pointed end, who raised a hand to stop its charge. The drill eventually stopped spinning as Jose used his hand to clench tightly onto the cone and crush it into smithereens. To his annoyance, Erza had managed to get away from his grasp during this short period of time and had regrouped with the Aegis and Demon. The she-demon still looked capable of fighting but the Aegis is on his last legs, he's barely able to stand.

"Heh, the three of you are truly worthy to be called S Class mages. Only the three of you stand where the rest of your guild mates fall." Jose raised a fist into the air as his magic swirled dangerously around it. "I wouldn't struggle if I were you, you'll just make it hurt even more! Dead-"

Jose's magic was forcefully dispelled as Jose looked around in surprise. "Magic?! Who's there?!"

"You have spilled much blood here...the blood of children." An aged but familiar voice sounded out from the smoke swirling around the battlefield as a small blurred form was seen walking through it. "Thanks to pitiful parents, a child went through pain, and shed many tears... and that goes for more than one child. This has gone far enough." Makarov walked through the smoke and stood before his children, pulsing with large amount of magic.

"I must put an end to this!"

The savage grin on Joe's face grew even wider.

"You wish to cause a cataclysm?"

Makarov's gaze hardened.

"If it is necessary for my guild."

* * *

Elfman ran alongside with his older sister and his nakamas as he slung Elden across his shoulders. Elden have lost consciousness the moment they stepped out of the room where their guild master is battling Jose. Elden had been trying to stay awake with his willpower alone this whole time in his attempt to help them. The rest of them only suffer slight injuries and a slight exhaustion of their magic power, thanks to Elden's help.

"Will Master be alright?" Gray asked as he ran alongside them.

"If we stay there we will just be a burden to Master. We have to trust him and leave everything to him."

"But he was injured!" Elfman exclaimed. He had seen first hand on how bad Master Makarov's condition was. He's in no condition to fight!

The five of them had made their way outside the Phantom Lord building and regrouped with the rest of their guild mates. Elfman looked on in relief as he saw Lisanna and Yukino still safe and sound. They were with Warren and Lucy as they huddled together to fight off the shades. Lucy had a horse-man thing spirit shooting arrows like a professional archer while Yukino had summoned Libra to pinned them down with gravity to aid the archer spirit in hitting its targets. The clouds swirled above the Phantom's building where Master Makarov's and Jose's fight were taking place, responding to the powers of the two Wizard Saints.

"Beast Arm: Iron Bull!"

With a roar, Elfman charged in and knocked the shades away from his younger sisters and nakamas. Gray and Erza made short work of them as the shades dispersed into wisps of black smoke.

"Elf-niichan! Mira-nee!"

Yukino ran up to Elfman and Mirajane when Elfman reached them and gently let Elden down from his shoulders. He's out cold, but still alive. Mirajane gave a hug to both of her younger sisters before joining in their efforts to ward off the shades that were still attacking the rest of the guild members.

"El is fine. But we need to hold off the shades as long as possible until Master defeats Jose."

"Master's in there?!"

"Yes, Warren. Now concentrate on the battle. Help to protect the injured." Mira continued to fire her attacks using Satan Soul, but the worry in her eyes were obvious when she glanced at Elden's unconscious form.

The rest of the guild had reorganised themselves around their new arrivals as they formed a circle facing outwards with their injured members in the center. This is their last stand. Gray clicked his tongue in annoyance as he inspected the damage being inflicted onto their guild building, which is now in ruins. If only he was faster and stronger, this wouldn't have happened.

"HELP!"

Gray turned to the cry of help as he saw Happy flying around in the air as he was bombarded with attacks by Jose's shades. He didn't waste anymore time as he launched his attacks to disperse the shades, allowing Happy to fly to their defensive circle for safety.

"Where's Natsu?!"

"He's still in there! We were separated when he was fighting the metal guy!"

Crap, the pyro is still in Phantom's building?!

Elfman punched away a shade that would have gotten Gray from behind as Lisanna clawed at another in her tiger form. Yukino had finally summoned Ophiuchus, and the snake spirit is now wrecking havoc among the huge mass of shades, buying the Fairy Tail members some time to catch their breath.

"Ophiuchus can't stay here for very long! I don't have enough magic to sustain him!"

"It will be enough, Yukino." Erza said as she stood protectively in front of the young girl as she slashed at the shades in front of her with her swords. "It was a good call summoning him."

Yukino's face beamed with pride as Lisanna chuckled at the sight. The small amount of time that Yukino had bought for them was enough for the remaining Fairy Tail members to renew their attacks with vigour.

"FOR FAIRY TAIL!" Erza roared as the rest of the guild roared with her.

A large beam of light suddenly spread out from within the Phantom's building as it encompassed the whole of Magnolia.

"So bright!"

"What is that light?!"

Gray watched in amazement with his nakamas as the shades slowly disappeared as they howled in agony upon bathing in that burst of light.

"The shades...!"

"Only the shades are disappearing!"

"It is not affecting us! It is a friendly light!"

"It's Fairy Law!" Erza shouted in delight, as she began to explain the effects of the spell to her guild mates. To sum it up, they are safe and Phantom is screwed.

The war is over.

"WE WON!"

Amidst the cheers of victory Mirajane sat down on the ground next to where her lover lay. She gently combed through his messy hair with her hands. She is running low on magic as well, and things could go very bad if Master hadn't ended the war when he did.

"El-niichan overdid it again, didn't he?"

Mirajane turned to look at her youngest sibling. Yukino had sat next to her and looked up at her. Mirajane gave a small laugh as she lifted Yukino up and placed her into her lap as she hugged her close to her chest.

"Yes, this idiot here overdid it again. But we would have been a lot worse off if he didn't appear when he did. How's your mission?"

"It went well!" Yukino bounced in Mirajane's lap excitedly. "Loke's so strong! He finished the bandits with a single punch! El-niichan just have to deliver them to the Rune Knights to claim our reward!" Yukino gave a huff. "The only reason we took so long is because they were so hard to track down. We only found them because El-niichan got lucky when he accidentally destroyed a large part of the forest when we got attacked by a wild bear. That's how we found their base."

Mirajane laughed again as she tried to imagine the scenario that Yukino described. Things like these only happen to Fairy Tail members.

Master Makarov had emerged from the ruined Phantom building as well, and gave an uplifting speech as Lucy cried tears of happiness when he comforted Lucy. Elfman and Lisanna joined their sisters as they sat around together while watching the sunset. Elden is still snoring away beside them, sleeping off the effects of magic exhaustion. It has been a long day.

"Ne, Mira-nee. We will have to rebuild the guild building, won't we?"

"Yup! It will be fun!"

"More like more fighting and brawls." Lisanna sighed. "I wonder how many times our construction work will be interrupted before the guild finally gets rebuilt? Knowing our guild, most of the time spent in rebuilding the guild will be to repair the damages we did during the construction phase instead. I can already foresee the brawls happening."

Elfman gave a boisterous laugh as he hugged his sisters with his big arms.

"It's alright! We are Fairy Tail after all!"


	6. Chapter 6- Monster Legion

"Everyone~~~! From today onwards we can receive job requests again! Although this took a long time everyone should work hard at their jobs!" Mira said out loud to the guild as she waved from behind the table that serves as the temporary bar table.

There was a loud cry of delight from the guild as they partied at the fact that they can finally do jobs to earn money again. The new guild building is still under construction, but we have managed to build a small wooden building that serves as a temporary area for the guild members to hang out until the construction is completed and to take on job requests. It has been almost two weeks since the war with Phantom Lord ended, and like what happened in the manga, Phantom Lord was disbanded.

Which means Gajeel and Juvia will be joining soon.

"A jewel for your thought, El?"

I turned to Lucy, who sat beside me on the table we were lounging at. Lucy and Yukino had been comparing notes about what they know about their magic and they were excited in showing off the spirits that they had collected. Yukino had shown Lucy all her spirits except Ophiuchus, which required Yukino to sacrifice a large amount of her magic reserves to summon. It's not a spirit she call upon lightly. The zodiac spirits were happy to see each other even if they now serve under different masters. Not all of them can appear in the Human World at the same time as Lucy and Yukino were not proficient enough in their magic for that to happen yet, but I have no doubt they will improve by leaps and bounds in the future. They are currently still a little wet behind the ears when it comes to masterful use of their magic, but they will get there.

"Nothing, I just can't believe I slept for a week, Lucy." I sighed as I took a drink from my mug. I know I would be out of it when the war was over, just not to that extent. I had overused my magic and had actually tapped into the spare magic I stored with the runes I inked on my body. It's an inspiration I got from Tsunade's Strength of a Hundred Seal from the Naruto series back in my previous world, and I had consulted with Freed many times about the possibility of coming up with such a technique using runes. We managed to come up with something similar in the end before I left the Thunder God Tribe, and the runes we created acts like a spare battery, a place where you can store excess magic powers you generate when you are idle and out of combat. It refills slowly, but it is helpful to be able to access an extra source of magic when you truly need it, like how I did back in the war with Phantom Lord.

Lucy laughed as Yukino bounded up to me with Loke beside her. Yukino was bored and she's too young to help with the rebuilding efforts, so she had went to the back of the construction site to train. Guess her training has ended.

"El-niichan, Lucy-san!"

"Yukino." I greeted Yukino as she plopped herself down beside me and Mira offered her a drink, which she took. Yukino drank a little from the cup as she began to chatter on what she did during her training.

A wooden table suddenly flew in our direction as I raised a barrier to stop it from crashing into us.

"YOU DARE SAY THAT AGAIN?!"

That was Erza. Who's got her so riled up? This is way more serious than interrupting the time she spent with her strawberry cake.

"Then I'll say it more clearly. This guild doesn't need _weak_ bastards."

I sighed as I recognised that voice. Laxus.

I watched in silence as Laxus began to talk in a demeaning manner to Team Shadowgear for losing to Gajeel. My fingers twitched in annoyance. I wanted to defend them, but every time Laxus and I said anything to each other more than a simple "Hello" or "Bye", it will turn into a full blown fight. A fight I don't need now. I still haven't completely recovered from the injuries I sustained in the war. Porlyrusica said that most of my injuries were internal and will heal in time. It won't be long before I made a full recovery, however, I'm currently unable to go for missions even if I wanted to, and I'm definitely not in a state fit for fighting.

Laxus then turned to Lucy as he totally ignored my presence. He started to criticise Lucy until I cut him off.

"Shut it, Laxus."

Laxus slowly turned to look at me, a mad glint in his eyes.

"You said something, _El_?"

"I told you to shut it." I said as I stood up from my seat and stood in front of Lucy and Yukino. "The matter is closed. Phantom Lord was in the wrong by attacking us first, and they have disbanded. No one in Fairy Tail is at fault here. _You_ weren't here when the guild was attacked. _You_ have no right to talk shit like that. So shut it."

Laxus's form crackled with electricity as I silently began to prepare my barriers. They will not be as strong as they usually are but it should be enough to hold off Laxus's attacks for a short while.

"I can't believe you have the _nerve_ to talk to me like that, El. After what you did to _betray_ me."

"I told you that you walked a path of self-destruction. There's nothing I can do if you don't want to listen."

Laxus's body began to tremble before he started to laugh madly, and it drew the stares of everyone in the guild.

"AHAHAHA!" He laughed as he turned around to walk away from where he came from. "If I succeed the guild I'll erase all the weak shits away! And every single one who opposes me!" He continued walking as his cloaked billowed behind him, his arms raised parallel to the ground and palms facing upwards. "I will build the strongest guild! A guild that nobody will look down on. The history's strongest guild! AHAHAHA!"

I watched in relief as Laxus strode off while laughing madly. He really had gone bonkers. I wonder if the lacrima implanted inside him was the cause of all the madness? Maybe someone should do a research study on how lacrima implantation affects the mental state of the person it is implanted into?

Lucy sat down in disbelief at Laxus's behaviour as Mira explained to her the relationship between Laxus and Master. Gray and Natsu were incensed at Laxus's behaviour as well, especially Natsu, who would have burnt things down if Erza didn't distract him by suggesting that they went on a job as well, together with Gray, Lucy, and Happy.

That's how I witnessed the birth of Team Natsu.

"Arara, I wonder how much property damage will they cause this time?" Mira commented as she sat down beside me, taking a short break from her barmaid duties. We watched the newly formed Team Natsu disappeared from our sights as they went off merrily to complete their job.

Which I guess will probably end up in complete disaster, given which members of the guild made up the team.

I raised an eyebrow as I looked at Mira lovingly. "Just what kind of job did they take this time?"

"Attack the illegal magic school in Lobinasu city's rural district." Mira quoted as her hand went to hold onto mine.

"I think the collateral damage will be something like this:" Yukino held out her fingers as she began to count it off one by one. Loke had went back to the Celestial Spirit World some time ago after Laxus left. "The school building will definitely be gone, at least half the street will be in ice or flames, if there's a park nearby all the trees would have been cut down by Erza, and if there's fish in any water bodies Happy would have gobbled all of them up. Maybe Aquarius will wash everything away too, if there are any water source nearby." Yukino added the last part as an afterthought.

I grimaced. "That sounds very likely. Master's not going to like the formation of this team."

Mira laughed as she leaned her head on my shoulders.

"Hey El-niichan, will you be forming a team as well?"

I looked to Yukino. "Technically the five of us are a team, right? Even if Mira is not going for missions regularly, she does complete some of them from time to time. We just haven't register ourselves officially as a team, that's all. You were too young to be part of a team until recently."

"Let's form a team! It's MANLY!" Elfman proclaimed as he suddenly appeared behind us.

"What should we call our team then?" Lisanna said as she went to sit beside Yukino.

"TEAM MAN!"

"Most of us here are females, Elf-niichan."

"Team Spirit!" Yukino exclaimed.

"You are the only one who uses Celestial Spirit magic." Mira quipped.

"Team White!" Lisanna clapped her hands excitedly. "We all have white hair!"

"I have black hair." I retorted, but it seems that my opinion was ignored by the Strauss siblings.

"Team Blackwhite then." Yukino nodded sagely.

"Does that even make any sense?" Elfman scratched his head. "It does not even sound manly."

"Team ELMY?" Mira suggested. "The E stands for Elfman and Elden, the L stands for Lisanna, the M represents my name, the Y stands for Yukino."

"That's...kind of cheesy, and a little kiddish." Lisanna said while crossing her arms. "No one will take us seriously."

"Hmm... the only teams in our guild are Team Shadowgear and the Thunder God Tribe apart from Team Natsu. Team Natsu is a terrible name, Shadowgear sounds kiddish, but the three of them formed the team when they were kids, can't blame them. Hate to admit it, but only the name of the Thunder God Tribe sounds cool." I thought out loud. "But then again I was the one who help founded the Thunder God Tribe, and I have great naming sense."

The other four of them gagged exaggeratedly in response much to my annoyance, but I continued speaking anyway.

"I was thinking of using the word 'legion' for our team." I said out loud, I remembered that another translation for Laxus's group was the Thunder Legion back in my previous world, but in this world, they used the word 'tribe', so the word 'legion' is still free for the taking. "How about the 'Monster Legion'? You Take Over mages do transform into monsters, Yukino summon spirits comparable to monsters like Ophiuchus, and I am a monster in my own right. I think it fits."

"That's..." Lisanna trailed off, eyes wide.

"MANLY!" Elfman cried out.

"I think its an apt description of us. I wonder what my spirits will think when they know of our team's name?"

"It does not sound too kiddish, nor is it too plain. I think it's ok." Mira contributed.

I grinned. "It's confirmed then, from today onwards, we are the 'Monster Legion'!"

"Yeah!"

* * *

"That was easy!" Yukino said as she bounced on her feet as our newly formed team, Monster Legion, officially completed our very first official mission since the founding of our team after we turn in the bandits we caught to the Rune Knights stationed near the location of our mission. It took some time for us to clear our schedules to be able to go on a mission together, especially Mira, who worked part-time at the bar as a barmaid, but the wait was worth it. The mission was fun.

"Too easy." Lissana said as she walked alongside Yukino. "The bandits just fell with a single punch from Pisces. I thought it will be something more challenging too."

"Yukino's improving quickly." I said as I held hands with Mira as we walked at the back of the group. "She's been training hard and the results are showing."

"Yukino's a MAN!"

"I'm a girl, Elf-niichan." Yukino said with a pout.

"Let's go and celebrate the completion of our very first mission as a team!" Lisanna said as she clapped her hands together. "Natsu said that his team is off to Akane Beach! They won the tickets to go there after they struck first prize in a lottery! Maybe we can meet them there as well?"

"That does sound like something fun to do." Mira said as she put a finger under her chin in thought. "It's been a long time since I had went to a beach."

The thought of seeing Mira in a swimsuit excites me, but I didn't show it. Still, the thought of going to Akane Beach gave me a sense of foreboding. Why do I feel this way? It's not like I have never been there before. I had went there a few times to complete some of my missions previously.

"Let's go! We can have a fun time there! I can meet Lucy and we can talk about Celestial Spirits again!" Yukino jumped happily onto Elfman as he let her sit upon his broad shoulders.

I shake off the thoughts of unease. I must have been thinking too much about it. Maybe the plot of the canon storyline included Akane Beach as one of the locations, but if we are together, there's nothing we couldn't handle. Team Natsu are there as well, their strength is nothing to scoff at either. I'm sure we can keep each other safe if things went south. Until I remember what it was that kept me uneasy, I will just go along with the rest of my team to Akane Beach as well.

"Let's go then. But Lisanna, are you sure it's not because you want to spend more time with Natsu? We can always give you two some alone time, you know?" I joked.

The rest of us laughed as Lisanna puffed up her cheeks. "He's just like an idiotic younger brother to me. We don't have that kind of relationship!"

"We know, we know." Mira said as she waved her hands, we were obviously unconvinced by her explanation. Unlike what happened in canon, Lisanna didn't get sucked into Edolas due to my intervention, and her relationship with Natsu had strengthened even more during the two years that she spent in Earthland instead of staying at Edolas. They were basically glued to each other at the hip. I don't know who Natsu ends up with in the end in canon, Lucy or Lisanna, he had never made an official choice when the Fairy Tail manga series ended. There was a sequel, something about the 100 year quest, but I didn't finish reading it nor could I remember anything noteworthy other than the fact that it involves dragons.

I just hope Natsu doesn't break Lisanna's heart no matter who he chooses. Lucy is a nice girl as well, but Natsu better be careful on how he phrases his words if he does choose a romantic partner somewhere down the line who isn't Lisanna. If not, the whole of Monster Legion will be after him.

Lisanna shouted into the sky at our looks of disbelief.

"Why won't any of you guys believe me?!"

* * *

"Oi...what the hell happened?"

"Language, Elfman." I chided. "Yukino's still here."

"I'm old enough to curse and swear, El-niichan. But really, what happened?"

We asked around the locals who stayed at Akane Beach if they saw Team Natsu, it won't be hard to notice them. Their antics draw attention to them no matter where they go. We were eventually led to the casino, where there were last seen.

The casino's in a mess, like it has been raided. Chairs and tables were strewn around, walls were damaged, and there were nobody in sight.

"Where's everyone?" Lisanna asked softly as she gave a wary look to our surroundings. The rest of us were subtly preparing our magic as well, ready to enter into a fight at a moment notice. Even Yukino is clutching at one of her keys.

Akane Beach, casino. Why does everything look so familiar? Had we stumble into a canon plot? Think, Elden, _think_!

"GRAY!"

We turned towards the voice, who we recognised as Lucy's. Did something happen to Gray?

The five of us ran towards the voice, only to see Lucy holding on to a fallen Gray, whose body started to crack, much to our horror.

"Please don't worry."

All of us jumped into alert as I raised a barrier in front of us and Lucy, and we watched a puddle of water on the floor starting to take form.

"Gray-sama is in Juvia's body."

We watched as Juvia, formerly of the Phantom Lord's Element Four, dropped Gray out from within her watery body. I ignored the following conversation that followed as I scanned for any signs of survivors. Juvia is not a threat. Where's Natsu and Erza? Where's Happy too?

My question was answered as a huge blast of fire erupted from behind us and Natsu jumped up from where he was and stood on top of a large shelf complaining about what kind of person will shoot a bullet into someone else's mouth. I furrowed my brows in thought, this scene does look familiar. I must have stumbled onto a canon plot again, but which one? What comes after the Phantom arc? I inwardly cursed myself for my bad memory. My memories of my past life and the canon plot have been getting more and more blurred as time passes. I have never wrote it down on paper for fear of being found out about my reincarnation status, so I settled for trying to remember it using my own brain. The downside is like things like this may happen. I was lucky that I remembered about the incident about The Beast, and a little of the Phantom arc, which helped me to quickly identify how to stop Abyss Break. I need to see if I can do something about my failing memories.

"That blocky bastard...DON'T THINK YOU CAN GET AWA-ARGH!"

Natsu yelped in pain as he collided into one of my barriers. He would have dashed off to who-knows-where if I didn't stop him.

"El? Lisanna? Mira? What are you guys doing here?!"

"Hey! Me and Elf-niichan are here as well! Don't dismiss us like that!" Yukino retorted.

"We wanted to come find you to have some fun at Akane Beach as well. Guess that's not happening." Lisanna said as she checked Natsu over for any injures.

I needed my answers quickly, so I stepped forward.

"Natsu, what happened?"

* * *

The Tower of Heaven, it's the Tower of Heaven arc that I stumbled into. Great, now we have to deal with another Wizard Saint, _again_.

Just what kind of shitty luck do we have?!

Come to think of it, Jellal must have arranged for Erza and her group to get tickets to Akane Beach. In canon, Loke was the one who gave it to them. I won't put it past Jellal to use some sort of method to make sure these tickets made their way to Erza in the end, even if it was through the hands of Loke. He's one scheming bastard before he reformed into a member of the light.

"Where the hell are we?!" Gray yelled as we drifted aimlessly on the ocean, I had created a simple boat using my barriers to ferry us across the oceans with Natsu's nose as our guide to find Erza and Happy, but said dragon slayer is currently suffering from motion sickness, and is puking over at the edge of the boat.

We had helped to return the townsfolk who were trapped in the cards back to normal with Dispel magic casted by Mira and I, and immediately set off on our mission to rescue Erza. We dropped a message to Master as well, who said that he will keep a lookout for us and to hurry and bring Erza back. He believed that we are strong enough to bring Erza back without any troubles. Including Erza, our group has three S Class mages, and a few of our members are close to reaching that level as well.

"Hey, Natsu, you sure it's around here?" Lucy questioned Natsu with a suspicious look.

"Get a grip! We are relying on that nose of yours!" Gray said as he crossed his arms and glared at his pyromaniac rival.

"Juvia does not believe that he would dare dash Gray-sama's hopes." Juvia imitated Gray as she glared at Natsu as well.

"Natsu, you really got to do something about that motion sickness of yours." Yukino said as she sat in a corner of the boat with Elfman, while Lisanna is patting comfortingly on Natsu's back, trying to ease his motion sickness.

"Yeah, a real man should not get sick by vehicles, he should make the vehicles sick!" Huh, had I heard that phrase somewhere else before?

"Give him a break, Yukino, Elf-niichan. Natsu can't help it either."

"Maybe it's a dragon slayer thing?" Mira suggested. My dear Mira, you don't know how terrifying close you are to the truth. "What do you think, El?"

I gave my trademarked shrug that everyone in the guild knows me for as I continued to steer the boat using my magic. "As long as he is able to guide us to Erza and Happy, I'm fine with it. Don't worry, Natsu is still a reliable guy when it comes to things like this."

"I still can't believe that they took Erza and Happy away when were unconscious, damn it!" Gray shouted in frustration.

"An accurate assessment, to think that a mage as strong as Ms Erza would be defeated-"

"Ain't no way she was beaten." Gray sent a harsh glare at Juvia's direction. "You don't know the first thing about Erza."

"Please, please forgive me!"

"Gray! Calm down!" Lucy tried to placate the angry Gray.

"No use getting worked up over this now. Save your anger for later when we find the enemy, Gray." I said as I tried to remember more of what I had read about in the Tower of Heaven arc. Mira placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. "What else do we know about our assailants?"

"Erza said something about those guys being her former nakama." Lucy piped up. "But when it comes to Erza, no one here knows much about her at all."

Everyone in the boat grimaced. Lucy's right. Even for me, I don't know much about the specifics about Erza's past. I know enough, but that's because I had prior knowledge. Other than that, I know nothing about what she had experienced before coming to Fairy Tail.

"I see it! A tower!" Yukino shouted excitedly as she stood up.

I increased the speed in which the boat I created sped towards our new destination. I think I had remembered enough about the Tower of Heaven. It's time to change things again.

For the better, or at least I hoped that it would be for the better. Hang in there, Erza, Happy, we are coming to save you.


	7. Chapter 7- The Tower of Heaven

I should have known that things will go to shit, especially when Natsu's involved.

The moment we got into the Tower of Heaven by an underwater passageway found by Juvia and Lisanna, Natsu immediately went on a rampage to knock out all visible guards in the vicinity, destroying all hopes of this being a secret infiltration mission and announcing our presence to everyone in the tower. We did find Erza thanks to all the commotion we made, but Natsu immediately ran off on his own to find Happy after Erza mentioned that she doesn't know where Happy is before anyone else could stop him.

Great. The next time, I will just lock Natsu in my barrier prison to prevent him from running off again. Or just break his legs, whichever is easier.

To dissuade us from venturing further into the tower, Erza began to explain about the Tower of Heaven, also known as the "R System", and her history with it. Her version of the story is a lot more gory and bloody than what I could remember in my previous life, which isn't surprising since the world I'm currently in is now my reality. Slaves in this world usually don't live to their adulthood here, we are lucky that the country of Fiore banned the use of slaves and outlawed it. Sadly, slaves are still present in several other countries of Earthland.

Erza's previous nakamas, Sho and Simon, appeared halfway into her story and learnt about how Jellal had lied to them. Not that I care, my only concern is to get everyone out to safety. I'm leaving the moment we grabbed everyone that we were supposed to retrieve with us. Jellal's plan cannot proceed further without Erza.

It wasn't long before Jellal announced his plan of a 'game' with us using the speakers in the tower, with the possibility of a fucking Etherion blasting down on us acting as our countdown death timer. Then, _of course_ , Sho became suicidal and had the bright idea of trapping Erza in one of his cards before running off on his own, saying that he will protect Erza on his own and that he will defeat Jellal. Simon had to run after him and our group just gets smaller and smaller.

 _Great._ Everything is turning out to be _great_. I hope you noticed my sarcasm here.

Mira must have noticed my mood as she squeezed my hand gently.

"You ok, El?"

"I'm feeling fabulous." I hissed. "I'm going to kill Natsu. I will skin him alive, then boil him, and then turn him into mincemeat for Ophiuchus to eat. Everything could have gone a lot more smoother if he hadn't run off on his own in the first place. That stupid blackie too. He had to ruin everything and kidnap Erza. Fighting the mastermind behind this Zeref revival project is the last thing we need. I feel _wonderful_."

"Ophiuchus wouldn't like that, El-niichan. Natsu wouldn't taste nice."

"It's a metaphor."

I ran a hand through my hair in frustration. Jellal should be at the top of the tower if I recall correctly, and there's no way he is letting us out of here. We surmised by now that this guy controls the movement of every single door in the tower. He treated everyone else like pieces on a chessboard, and everything is moving as he had planned. The entire situation is within his control. In his opinion, we are trapped, and as much as I hate to admit it, he's right.

Still, there's still a way to turn this situation around slightly in our favour. Jellal seemed to forget something, something that we can very helpfully remind him once again.

Fairy Tail's specialty lies in property damage. There is no building capable of containing us.

"El, that smile on your face is creeping me out."

I ignored Elfman's comment. "Say, guys. If this tower is so important to Jellal's grand plan of reviving Zeref, what will happen if we, let's say, put more than just a few holes in it?"

"You mean..." Lisanna started to look at me with a spark of realisation in her eyes. She has always been a smart one.

"Well, whatever plan that guy concocted obviously cannot continue if the tower is destroyed, and we Fairy Tail mages are very good at destroying things. Just look at Phantom's guild building. No offense, Juvia."

"None taken. But it is indeed a very brilliant plan if we want to stop the plans of a madman. Juvia agrees."

"And it might discourage the Magic Council from firing Etherion as well." Mira added. "No point firing it when their target has already been destroyed."

"But Natsu and Erza may get caught up in the destruction as well! What if we accidentally hurt them?!" Yukino exclaimed while waving her hands wildly in the air to grab my attention.

"It's ok, Yukino." Elfman consoled her. "They have survived worse before."

"If we are in agreement," Gray interjected. "can we just get along with implementing our grand plan?"

We are currently at around the seventh floor, not anywhere too high yet. It is a good place to start if we want to bring Jellal down from where he is up high in the tower.

"Alright, let's split ourselves up." I clapped my hands once to focus their attention onto me. "Gray, Lucy, Juvia, you guys will be one group. Yukino, Elfman, Lisanna, you guys will be another. I myself will be on my own as well as Mira. Find any structures that seemed important and destroy any pillars you can see that supports this tower. Once you guys are done, get the hell out of here and see if you can find a way to communicate with Master via communication lacrima, hopefully there's one lying around here somewhere. Master is a Wizard Saint, maybe his status and influence can help buy us some time to get out of here before Etherion is fired. I don't trust the Magic Council in not pulling the trigger to fire Etherion even when the tower is destroyed, most of these idiots will stop at nothing to hold onto their seats of power."

"Heh, finally something that fits our specialty." Gray said as he punched his fists together.

"Remember, don't split your groups any further, and also, get out of here the moment you are done. The danger of this situation is similar to those of a SS ranked mission, which none of us here is ready for, including me and Mira. Gather at our initial landing spot when you guys are done and secure a boat to get us out of here. _If_ Etherion does arrive, I want those who is already out of here to get away from the area pronto. Am I _clear_?"

"You are telling us to aban-"

"No, I'm not. I'm just trying to keep as many of us alive as possible. What can any of us possibly do to stop Etherion if it does appear?"

Gray said nothing as he punched the nearest wall, seething in rage at my words.

"I don't care if you are angry with me, Gray. If you really don't wish for that scenario to happen, then hurry up and help to destroy the tower already. Maybe that will dissuade the council from really firing the Etherion, assuming Jellal's information is right."

"Fine." Gray replied through gritted teeth. "But I'm not abandoning any one of us."

"Then make sure we all do our part and help to destroy this tower quickly before Jellal's lackeys arrive. He must be very confident in the abilities of the three mages under his command if they are the only forces he sent against us."

"We should be able to take care of them without any problems." Lisanna cut in. "None of us here are slouches when it comes to combat, even Yukino."

"Let's just get on with it." Mira sighed. "El's right, the faster we finish this. The safer we will be."

The rest of the group voiced their acknowledgement before splitting off into our respective groups and walked off in a random direction. I hope that this will be enough to stop Etherion from firing, which is the real danger behind this entire incident.

I casually swing my arms outwards as I created huge battering rams to destroy any important infrastructures I could find. I heard more sounds of explosion from the directions where the rest of the groups were headed. Destroying the tower is just part one of my plan, I had hoped that by doing this, I can lure Jellal out from where is hiding and to also take back some semblance of control of this entire situation. I don't want Erza to face Jellal if possible, she's currently emotionally compromised. I don't like how Jellal had played us like chess pieces. The irony? He himself is a disposable piece in Ultear's eyes.

Come out, Jellal. I know that there's no way you will sit still and watch this happen. I know you will come after me.

Come, I will be waiting.

* * *

 ** _HOW DARE THEY?!_**

Jellal watched through the lacrima vision as the Fairy Tail's main group went about in destroying his hard work. _Eight years!_ Nearly a decade of hard work down the drain!

Jellal immediately sent a mental message through telepathy. _"Ikaruga! Fukuro! Vidaldus! Ignore the dragon slayer and Erza! Stop those buffoons from destroying the tower! Stop them at all cost!"_

 _"There's only three of us, and there are four groups of them!"_

Jellal rose from his seat as he threw his chessboard onto the ground in rage. He growled. The Fairies are going to wish that they hadn't been born.

 _"I will take care of the Aegis, you guys take care of the rest."_

 _"Understood."_

Jellal walked down from his room on the top of the tower as he made his way to the lower floors.

They will pay. These puny Fairy Tail mages will pay. He won't allow anyone to stop him from reaching his dream of true freedom and paradise. He will revive Zeref.

"Wait for me, Zeref." Jellal whispered. "Several pests have appeared and I need to do some pest-control." Jellal quickened his pace, eager to get his plan back in working order.

"The promised time will come soon, I promise."

* * *

"Is this good enough?"

"This is the seventh pillar that we had destroyed, the tower ought to be shaking by now, Elf-niichan."

"I don't think there's anymore pillars in this area, maybe we should move to our rendezvous point like El said? Also, why is there so many lacrima crystals within the building? Something doesn't feel right here. "

"No point thinking about that now, Lisanna. Let's move on-"

"WATCH OUT!"

Elfman twisted out of the way just as a gigantic rocket impacted against the area at where he once was. What the hell was that?!

"I will not let you break the rules. I will pass judgement on you in the name of justice! The Warrior of Justice, Fukuro, is here!"

The three white-haired siblings watched as an owl-head man made his appearance and held his fists in front of him like a boxer. The rocket returned to the man as he wore it like a jet pack. From the looks of it, this adversary of theirs had the ability to fly.

"Is he human or owl?"

"That's not the question you should be concerning yourself with right now, Elf-niichan!"

"Justice Ho Ho Hou!"

The owl-man charged his fist with energy and punched at Elfman, firing a blast of energy that ripped the ground it passed through and threw Elfman off the ground.

"Open: Gate of the Paired Fish, Pisces!"

The twin Celestial Spirits appeared at Yukino's call and lunged at Fukuro, who punched them on their head and sent them careening towards the side of the room where the battle is taking place. Lisanna took this chance to transform into a rabbit and launched a powerful kick at the assassin, sending him flying to the other end of the room.

"Jet Ho Ho Hou!"

The sisters barely had time to rest as the owl-man immediately recovered from their attacks and charged at them by flying with his rocket pack. The sisters were forced to jump to the side to avoid the charge, but were now separated from each other with Fukuro in the middle.

"Yukino!"

Lisanna tried to reach Yukino as the owl-man opened his mouth even wider than those of a snake's in an attempt to swallow Yukino whole. _Is he really trying to eat her?!_

"Beast Arm: Stone Bull!"

Elfman charged in with an arm of stone as he punched the side of Fukuro's face and caused him to trip. Lisanna jumped into the air, still in her rabbit form, as she kicked down hard on the top of Fukuro's head, sending him crashing onto the floor and snapping his mouth shut.

"Was he trying to eat me?! Gross!" Yukino said as she immediately hid behind Elfman and shivered in disgust.

"His magic probably had something to do with eating." Lisanna reasoned. "There must be a reason for him doing that."

"This guy is dangerous. I'm going to fully transform. Yukino, Lisanna, watch my back."

"Don't worry about us, Elf-niichan."

With a roar, Elfman used Beast Soul to fully transform himself into a beast as he pummeled the owl-man who had the nerve to try and eat his sister. To his surprise, the owl-man grabbed his fist and kicked him upwards into the air before flying after the air-borne Elfman.

"Pisces!"

The twin fish responded to their master's calls as they rammed themselves into Fukuro. Lisanna transformed into a feline as she clawed at Fukuro's face, forcing him to back off. Elfman roared in his Full Body Take Over as he came back crashing down into Fukuro, but Fukuro was faster as he sent his rockets at Elfman, who was too close to dodge it and was sent crashing through a few walls into another room.

"Who-whoo. You guys are tough. This may actually be a worthwhile job for once."

Elfman threw a large piece of debris that sped through the air towards Fukuro, which he batted aside. Elfman engaged Fukuro in a fist fight as they both tried their hardest to beat their opponent senseless. Lisanna skirted around them in her feline form as she contributed some attacks of her own whenever she had the chance.

"Whoooooooooooo, DON'T GET IN MY WAY!"

With a swing of his thick arm, Fukuro's arm caught Lisanna in her gut as he smashed her against the wall and knocked her unconscious. Pisces swooped down on him from above, sensing their master's rage. Fukuro jumped into the air as he punched a blast of energy that tore through them, sending them back to the Celestial Spirit World. Elfman used this opportunity to launch a flurry of punches at the owl-man, only for Fukuro to slip past him and get to his back and had him in a headlock before quickly _swallowing_ him whole.

"Lisanna-nee! Elf-niichan!"

"Who-whoo. That was the wildest meal I ever had! Justice always prevails, little girl! I will not any evil-doers run amok! Even if they are little girls!"

Yukino trembled in rage. "What did you do to Elf-niichan?! Spit him back out!"

Fukuro rubbed his tummy in contentment as he spoke. "The digestion process has begun. In approximately ten minutes, your brother's body will be reduced to nothing, and when that happens, his magic will truly belong to me."

Yukino's eyes widened in shock before quickly narrowing back in determination. She took out a golden key. It would be too dangerous to use Ophiuchus in such a confined area and Lisanna-nee is unconscious, unable to defend herself. This spirit is the only one that could match this owl-man in terms of power and bring her Elf-niichan back within ten minutes. Yukino pointed the key at the owl-man's direction, preparing for the amount of magic she had to sacrifice to call upon one of her strongest spirits. There are times she doesn't want to call on him despite of his strength. His flirtatious personality can be a little frustrating to deal with, even for someone as patient as her.

"Open: Gate of the Lion, Leo!"

* * *

"Ice-Make: Prison! Now! Juvia! Lucy!"

"Unison Raid!"

A large vortex of whirlpool swept around in fury as it swallowed their opponent, Vidaldus, whole. A short while later, that crazy assassin lay defeated on the floor as the waters receded, the hair on his head had disappeared as Vidaldus's gleaming bald head glinted under the light.

"We...did it!"

"This is all possible thanks to the hard work of Gray-sama!" Juvia said with a lovesick look on her face and hearts in her eyes, before sending a menacing expression to Lucy. "Juvia only did a Unison Raid with you only because Gray-sama wishes for Juvia to do so, _understand_? The only one that Juvia ever wanted to do a Unison raid with is Gray-sama!"

Lucy wisely took a few steps backwards from the madly-in-love water woman, she has no wish to be trapped in Juvia's Water Lock.

"We are done here." Gray said as he rejoined the two girls while dusting off his shoulders. "Let's go meet up with the rest at our rendezvous point. I can feel the entire tower shaking already. It's no longer safe to be here."

"Yes! Gray-sama!"

* * *

"Yasha's Empty Flash!"

Mirajane defended herself from the invisible slashes as cuts appeared all across her body. This woman before her is a master swordsman, and had obviously honed her skills to an incredible level.

But this is nowhere as good as Erza.

Mirajane flew off into the air before charging up dark energy between her palms.

"Darkness Stream!"

A multitude of large tendrils composed of dark energy surrounded Mirajane's opponent as it threatened to engulf her whole. Her opponent, who introduced herself as Ikaruga, calmly took a step forward as she slashed at the dark energies around her, allowing her to escape unscathed. Mirajane narrowed her eyes in thought, she had almost finished destroying any pillars she could find and the tower is barely standing as it is. She is worried about the rest of the Fairy Tail group too, especially her siblings. They are strong, but the opponents they are facing are seasoned assassins that killed for a living. Elden should be alright, he's the strongest mage out of their entire group.

Regardless, Mirajane needs to end her battle now.

"Wha-What is this power?!"

Ikaruga watched in fright as Mirajane suddenly charged up a huge amount of power as she began to transform again. She had another form other than Satan Soul?! The information Jellal had about her wasn't accurate!

As the light from the transformation died down, Mirajane appeared in a demonic form with light blue scales around her arms, legs, and the pair of horns that grew on her head. Mirajane's tail swished around as it knocked away the debris around her, also having the same aquatic colour as the scales on the other parts of her body. Mirajane opened her eyes, and the light blue wings on her back stretched opened and revealed the spiky scales of the wings in all of its demonic glory.

"Satan Soul: Halphas. Master forbade me from using this form as it had the power to destroy an entire city without much effort. However, I need to end this battle now."

Ikaruga looked upon Mirajane in rage. Is Mirajane underestimating her? _How dare she mock her!_

"Don't look down on me, demon!" Ikruga took her stance as she dashed forward towards Mirajane with a hand on her sheathed sword. She swung her sword out of its sheath at a blinding speed as she struck to cut the demon down.

"Cosmic Beam."

With a single mutter of her spell, Mirajane fired a multi-coloured beam of light from her outstretched finger that she pointed at Ikaruga. The beam split off into numerous smaller beams upon impact and rained on the area behind Ikaruga, reshaping it into a desolate wasteland.

Mirajane turned away from her fallen opponent as she flew away from the collapsing tower. Her job here is done. She's worried about her younger siblings, especially Yukino. Elden was right in saying that this situation is at least SS ranked in terms of danger. None of them are ready to face it yet.

A bright radiance of light caught her attention and Mirajane's heart skipped a beat. That was Loke's spell! Yukino was forced to summon Loke?! What happened to Elfman and Lisanna?!

The tower began to sway and started to lean on one side. It won't be long before it falls completely. Mirajane dove to where the light shone. Elden's and Gray's molding magic can keep their respective groups safe. She had to get her siblings out of here!

 _Stay strong Yukino! Nee-chan's coming!_

* * *

"Regulus Impact!"

Loke continued to attack his foe, who had the disgusting ability to consume his opponents and take their magic as his own. This vile being had swallowed the brother of his master and there isn't much time left. Loke glanced to his back and saw Yukino leaning onto a wall for support. Yukino's running out of magical powers, it is not easy to sustain a combat-oriented spirit like him when he's fighting like this, even for an adult mage. Yukino's only 11 years old. It is already a wonder that he managed to stay here as long as he did. He can sustain himself in the Human World using his own powers without any problems, but that will cut down his offensive powers drastically. Powers that he need if he wants to prevent Elfman from turning into bird feed in a few minutes.

He needs to end this soon.

"Regulus Gatling Impact!"

With a shine of bright light, Loke punched his foe repeatedly without letting up. His foe had used a Full Body Take Over of The Beast, giving it extra durability. He needs a powerful attack that force the owl to spit Elfman out!

"Who-whoo! You are a worthy adversary! I wonder what happens if I eat a Celestial Spirit?"

The owl sent a punch of condensed energy which Loke dodged and he kicked the owl upwards in the jaw, sending him a few steps back. Loke emitted a bright glow once more as beams of light flew out from his opened palm to blast at the owl, who crossed his arms in front of him to block Loke's attacks. The owl charged in and attempted to ram himself using its newly acquired beast form, only for Loke to trip him and punched him at the back of his head.

It was a mistake.

The owl unexpectedly turned his head 180 degrees backward and jumped to gobble Loke whole, smacking his lips as he swallowed the Celestial Spirit.

"LOKE!"

"That was a magnificent feast! I told you, girl! Justice will always prevail! Now, offer me your life!"

Yukino tried to take a few steps backwards, but she tripped over a debris and fell onto her back. She tried to move, but she no longer has the energy to. Tears welled up in her eyes, not because of her pending death, but because she hates herself for being so weak.

She's too weak to save her older brother, and she's too weak to enable her spirits to fight to their full potential. Her siblings may die because she is _weak_.

If only she had more power.

"Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!"

A speeding flaming missile in the form of Natsu launched out of nowhere as he headbutted the owl-man right in the gut. Yukino watched in relief as she saw her older brother and Loke got spit up by the owl-men from Natsu's attack. Without Elfman in his belly, Fukuro lost the ability to use Take Over and reverted back to his original form.

"Stay away from my siblings!"

With an enraged howl, Mirajane announced her arrival and crashed down from above, still in the form of Halphas, and Fukuro was blasted down a few floors below through a hole on the floor, unmoving and unconscious.

"Yuck! Did this guy just ate Elfman and the human-cat? Ewww!"

"Thank you for saving Yukino, Natsu. But we must get out of here now."

"Aye, the building's falling!"

Mirajane glanced at the blue-haired tomcat, at least Natsu had managed to save Happy.

"Happy, would you mind grabbing Lisanna for me? Natsu- Where is he?!"

Everyone present turned to look at where Natsu was standing a while ago. Their resident pyromaniac had disappeared.

"I think...he might have run off again." Yukino finished lamely.

"Don't worry, I can carry Elfman. I can sustain myself with my own powers now that I'm out of combat. Yukino will not need to supply me with anymore magical power."

Mirajane sent a sweet smile at Loke. "Thank you, Loke."

Loke merely produced a rose he kept on himself at all times and presented it to Mirajane while kneeling on one knee. "Anything for the lovely-ARGH! Yukino! Why did you hit me?!"

"Stop hitting on Mira-nee! She's already attached to El-niichan!"

"My, my, what a gentleman you are, Loke." Mirajane said as she put a hand to her cheek and reverted back to her usual appearance. "Sorry, but my heart had already been stolen by someone else."

Loke clutched the area where his heart is with one hand while dramatically raising his other hand into the sky as if in great sorrow. "Alas! The fair maiden rej- OUCH! Yukino!"

"Hurry and carry Elf-niichan out of here already! The tower is collapsing!" Yukino cut Loke off before he can speak further, the look in her eyes suddenly seemed to promise a world of pain. "You spout these nonsense one more time, I will ask Libra to turn you into a kitty pancake. Am I _clear_?!"

Loke hid behind Happy out of reflex as he began to sweat in fear. Libra's punishment isn't fun, and she takes great joy in fulfilling their master's wishes whenever Yukino is feeling vindictive. Loke had been on the receiving end of Libra's punishments many times for his flirtatious behaviour in front of Yukino's sisters. Both feline species began to sweat rapidly as Yukino sent them the death glare, including Happy, even if he does not know why he earned Yukino's ire.

In an desperate act to save themselves, Loke and Happy nodded rapidly in unison in an attempt for self-preservation.

"AYE!"

* * *

"You need to go back now! The tower is collapsing!"

"I don't see _you_ going back. Why should I?"

"Elden! Just-"

It didn't take me long to destroy most of the important pillars that were holding the tower. I refrained from destroying all of them in case some of my guild mates are still in the tower. They should be at least on their way out by now, and if they are somehow still inside, I wanted to buy some time for them to get out of here. I ignored Erza as I continued to stay at my spot amidst the falling debris around us. I have erected a shield above our heads to prevent the debris from falling on our heads. Somehow, Sho and Simon had turned up at where I was together with Wally and Millianna, saying it was impossible to climb further upwards as the tower was collapsing. Without any warning, I shot a Dispel at the card Sho was using to hold Erza captive, releasing her from her prison. I then quickly trapped her previous nakamas in a barrier prison before shipping them out of the tower far away from here.

At least Simon will not die this time, hopefully. He was the only one who bothered to use his brain to see through Jellal's lie. It will be a pity if he died.

Once that was done, I decided to wait for Jellal instead. I wanted to simply leave initially, but on second thought, no way is he going to let us just leave like that. He has the ability to fly at high speeds and can easily catch up with us in the middle of the ocean. Someone has to stop him. Furthermore, Erza does not want to leave the tower. Erza was of the mind that she should fight Jellal alone, and I refused to leave her alone for obvious reasons. She is not good enough to go up against a Wizard Saint. The same goes for me. We will have a better fighting chance if we both stick together and wait for Jellal.

"Where is the Jelly asshole?!"

So Natsu made his way here as well. I guess you can't prevent everything in canon from happening.

"Natsu! What are you doing here?!"

"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to kick Jellal's ass! That bastard! He made me and Happy fall through 10 floors with his trapdoors! Where is he?!"

I whistled. I'm surprised that Natsu had survived that without a scratch on his body, but then again, he _is_ Natsu, so maybe I shouldn't be so surprised.

"Dear me, it seems that the game is already over."

The unrecognisable voice immediately put us on guard. From the look in Erza's eyes, this voice is probably Jellal's.

The hooded figure of Jellal slowly walked out of the shadows of the falling tower.

"It has been a while, Erza."

"Jellal."

"Oi! You jelly bastard! Wait till-"

I snapped Natsu's mouth shut by hammering my fist on his head. "Now is not the time, Natsu. This guy is a madman who wants to revive the legendary black mage Zeref. Be serious."

Natsu lit his body aflame. "Heh, now I'm all fired up."

"Natsu! Elden! Get out of here! I will handle Jellal alone!"

I turned my head towards Jellal. "Oi, Jellal! How long until Etherion fires?"

Jellal looked at my with unconcealed interest in his eyes, but he accommodated my wish.

"Seven minutes. Seven minutes until Etherion strikes this place."

I pinched the bridge of my nose as I closed my eyes and inhaled a deep breath, trying to sooth my nerves. "You hear him, Erza, Natsu. We either have seven minutes to get out of here, or to beat this crazy fellow and _then_ get out of here."

"Please, Elden, Natsu, leave this to me and get out of here." Erza pleaded.

"Five minutes. If you used more than five minutes or you got yourself in danger within those five minutes, we are stepping in." I told Erza. This is the most I can give her. I'm not sure if the tower can absorb Etherion like it used to in canon now that it is crumbling down, I just hope that the current state of the tower is enough to dissuade the Magic Council from firing Etherion.

Erza stared at me for a short while before looking back towards Jellal and silently accepted my bargain. Jellal's eyes grew wider as he gave an insane smile.

"Let's enjoy our time here, shall we?"

* * *

 **AN: So, the first week of school had started for me and I finished my quota for studying early on today. Seeing that I had a few hours free and that there is nothing much to do since it is still the first week of school, I decided to write a chapter for TAOFT instead of IJWTTTW. IJWTTTW's individual chapter tend to have a much longer word count so I decided to write a chapter for TAOFT instead, hence the decision.**

 **In my opinion, I don't like the ToH arc in canon when I first read the manga or even when I reread it. I still don't like it, but I decided to try and reshape the events in my fanfic to see how the consequences of changing certain events can possibly affect the future. One of the main selling points in Reincarnation fanfics is to bring about change, and it is what I am trying to do here.**

 **I hoped that you enjoyed the story so far.**


	8. Chapter 8- Welcome Back

Surprisingly, it took Erza only about three or four minutes to pin Jellal down on the ground. Is that even possible? Jellal was supposed to have the power of a Wizard Saint. Did Jellal suffered from a loss in power? Or has Erza's growth exceeded my expectations?

Upon Erza's questioning, Jellal then began to talk about how his body was possessed by the ghost of Zeref and became nothing more than a doll to revive him, which sounded like a load of bullshit. Did this happen in canon? I remembered Jellal kicking Erza's and Natsu's ass until Natsu decided to consume the magic from Etherion and activated Dragon Force, giving Natsu the power to take Jellal down. Jellal definitely didn't go down this easily. I also know for a fact that Zeref is very much alive, and he is the catalyst for what happened in the Tenrou arc.

Zeref is alive, the R System wouldn't have worked.

Still, talking about possession magic...

"Erza." I interjected. "I really think that he is possessed, I can feel it."

Everyone's eyes widened at my words, especially Jellal's. Hah, wait till he found out that the "spirit" possessing him isn't Zeref. I wasn't lying when I said I felt something similar to Possession magic within him. It's very subtle and probably can only be noticed if you have the correct skillset. It was through sheer luck that I noticed it at all, Ultear did a wonderful job in concealing it. I wonder if this finding can help me change things for the better?

"Really?" Natsu questioned. "Isn't your magic Barrier magic? How did you sense it?"

"When I was still in the Thunder God Tribe, Laxus and I studied all sorts of magic we could get my hands on together. He focused more on offensive magics while I took an interest in the different types of defensive magics. Defensive magic comes in many forms. What I studied includes magic that defend you from invasions into your own mind. I am proficient in dealing with mental attacks to my mind thanks to the Mind Protection magic that I learnt. With it, I can sense a possession spell casted on Jellal. It's very carefully hidden, but it is there. I am not as good as Warren when it comes to anything to do with the mind, but I believe that I am good enough to sense and recognise Mind Possession magic when I see one. Like I said, the Possession magic within Jellal is subtle, but it's there."

I knew I have to study Mind Protection magic the moment I laid my eyes on the tome that teaches the reader how to learn it in the guild archives. There are individuals in Earthland that has the ability to read the minds of their opponents, like Cobra and Angel's Gemini, and I cannot afford anyone to learn what I knew from my previous life in case I really have to deal with the Oracion Seis. Mind Protection magic is a lot like occlumency from the Harry Potter series, in the sense that it prevents your mind from being invaded or your memories being stolen. Thanks to it, I also managed to learn a few things regarding possession, including how to spot and counter it.

Upon hearing my words, Erza's form trembled for a short while before she looked up at me from where she is pinning Jellal down on the ground.

"Can you remove it?"

"No promises. I can only say that I will try."

"Do it. Please, save Jellal."

* * *

What? Possessed? Him?

It has got to be a joke. It must be a joke. He was only joking when he said that he was possessed by the ghost of Zeref. His motive for saying so was to buy time for Etherion to fire down upon this location. Zeref's ghost constantly whispered to him, yes, but he was never possessed. He was sure of it. Jellal unconsciously tried to get away from the Aegis who is walking towards where he is pinned down by Erza, but the Salamander and the Aegis are watching him with a cautious eye, so he stopped before his actions became suspicious. Jellal could have got away from Erza with his magic, but he is also not at full power. His Thought Projection, Siegrain, is still at Era trying to make sure that Etherion fires at this location before the whole tower come crumbling down, and Jellal won't be at full power until Siegrain returns and merges with him. He isn't sure if he could take on three accomplished mages and win at his current level of power. To make things worse, Siegrain had informed him through telepathy that Makarov had somehow learnt about the Tower of Heaven and had raised hell to the council members at Era via communication lacrima due to the fact that his guild members were still here. Siegrain had managed to convince the council members to fire Etherion in the end, but doing so had wasted precious time. Etherion would have already been fired if it wasn't for Makarov's meddling.

Jellal spotted the Aegis preparing some sort of spell that would cancel the "Mind Possession" magic casted on him. He inwardly laughed. Never mind, let them try all they want to "release" him from Zeref's possession. They will soon find out how laughably wrong they are. The spell the Aegis was preparing seemed to take up quite a fair bit of power, maybe it will make taking the Aegis down easier later on when they found out that they were wrong. There's no way he was being possessed, to even think of such a possibility is laughable. Jellal brought his thoughts back to his grand plan. Everything is finally falling into place. The tower may be collapsing but it should still be in good enough condition to activate the R system for a short while. It is all the time he needs to bring Zeref back. Soon, the Etherion will fire and they will all be led by Zeref to enter the promised land of paradise.

True freedom can finally be achieved.

The Aegis pointed a finger at Jellal as a huge magic circle appeared beneath Jellal.

"Release!"

* * *

"El! The Etherion is firing soon!"

"Crap, those old farts really decided to fire the Etherion no matter what?!"

Jellal is currently squirming painfully and clutching his head in pain from the release of the Possession magic casted on him. Personally, I feel that another reason for his reaction may also be the fact that he is trying very hard to get over the reality that he _really_ was possessed, and that I had released him from the possession. Erza is trying to ease his pain, but she has no way in doing so.

Have fun, Jellal. Have fun in trying to come to terms with the fact that the past eight years of your life was lived in a lie. I pity your plight, I really do. But I cannot bring myself to care about you right now.

There is a satellite cannon that we have to take care of.

"Elden! Natsu! Get out of here! Leave without me!" Erza said as she carried a struggling Jellal on her shoulders, who is still writhing in pain from the release of the possession on him and the realisation that comes with it. It is a lot to take in at once, I don't blame him for squirming around like that. It has to be taxing and painful on your mind. Carrying a struggling Jellal had slowed Erza's speed by quite a fair bit, which delayed our escape.

"It's too late, Erza." I replied as I shrugged my shoulders. "It's too late to run and get out of here. However, there's a chance that we can survive if we go on the offensive instead."

"Really?" My words immediately caught Natsu's attention, who seemed delighted at the idea of breaking something. Even now, when it is possible that we can be reduced to nothing from Etherion at any minute, he still wants to break something. Glad to see where his priorities lie. The tower is now trembling and starting to fall to pieces due to all the damage our little group had done to it earlier and we were forced to evacuate. I had also sped up the process by destroying any other pillars or similar infrastructures we came across while we ran and tried to make our great escape. I wanted to create some semblance of chance for the council to rethink on their actions of firing Etherion if they saw the tower collapsing rapidly, but I don't think it is working. I can see the magic arrays in the sky, Etherion will be firing soon.

We still hadn't made it out, I don't think there is time for us to make it out.

"Erza, grab Jellal and go. Natsu and I will take down Etherion. It's worth a shot." It is the only thing we can do now. The current state of the Tower of Heaven will probably not absorb the blast as it did in canon. It is staring to fracture into many pieces and is still crumbling. I cannot rely on what I knew happened in canon anymore. I had gambled on the fact that the sight of a destroyed Tower of Heaven will dissuade the old farts at Era from firing Etherion and I lost. I guessed that I had underestimated their stupidity and Zeref's reputation.

"Yosh! Let's go destroy something!"

I rolled my eyes. Natsu and his destructive tendencies. This is probably the only time that I will welcome it.

"Elden! Natsu! It's-"

"See you later, Erza. We will be back."

I didn't allow Erza to reply as I grabbed Natsu and flew up high in to the air with Susanoo Stage III towards the direction where I see the huge magic arrays displayed in the sky, showing us that Etherion was preparing to fire soon. I cannot see the physical cannon anywhere, it must be too high up for us to spot it.

"Hey, Natsu. Want to try and do a Unison Raid?"

* * *

This is one of the best thing that had happened in his life!

"WOOHOOO! I can fly without getting motion sickness!"

"Stop yelling in my ear, Natsu. I think your motion sickness problem is a matter of perspective for you. You don't get sick from flying with Happy because in your mind, you treat him as a nakama, not a vehicle. So if you treated my technique as how you treat Happy's, like those from a nakama, you probably won't get sick. Glad to see that I was right."

"This is so cooool!"

Natsu said as he jumped up and down within the otherworldly warrior thing that is currently flying high up in the sky with the wings on its back at breakneck speed. It is almost the same size as the Tower of Heaven! He didn't know El could do things like these! He will need to fight one of these huge warriors in the future!

"Hey El! Use this guy to fight me later when we returned to the guild!"

"The whole of Magnolia will be destroyed, stupid."

"Then how about immediately after this? Come on! Just one time!"

"No. I probably will run out of powers to use Stage III properly after this attack. You will have to make do with Stage I or II."

"Elllllllll." Natsu whined.

"Focus, Natsu. I will launch my most powerful arrow, you try and combine your attack with it. Erza's and Jellal's life depends on this one shot, as well as ours."

Natsu eyes burned with determination. There's no way that he will let that stupid cannon harm Erza or any of his nakama!

"Destroying the magic arrays in the sky should be sufficient in preventing Etherion from firing for a short while. Your fire should be potent enough to burn through it and I believe you are strong enough to do so. I doubt our attacks can reach the cannon itself, it's too high up and we don't have the time to fly there. We don't need to stop Etherion completely, just make sure that we buy enough time for Erza and the rest of our nakama to get out of here. We will get out of here too once we finished the job. Don't argue with me for this one."

"I got it."

The both of them had flown high above the clouds by now and are nearing the magic arrays. The ethereal warrior stopped flying further, and instead materialised a huge bow with an even larger arrow loaded on it and pulled the arrow backwards, pointing the arrow to the center of the magic array produced by Etherion.

"Natsu!"

Natsu lit his entire body, and then the entire ethereal warrior was bathed in draconic flames as both Fairy Tail mages combined their powers into one, synchronising with each other like a seasoned duo despite the fact that this is the first time that they are working together in tandem. The flame coated warrior roared its challenge to Etherion, and drew the arrow back in preparation to fire it.

Natsu grinned. This is awesome! This is the first time he used such a powerful attack on such a grand scale!

He turned to Elden, only to see that Elden seems to have a faraway look in his eyes as he stared at the manifestation of their combined powers as if he was reminiscing something.

"El? You alright?"

Elden was brought out of his thoughts as he shook his head.

"Sorry Natsu, it's just that doing this brought back some memories. This is the second time I have attempted a Unison Raid with anyone else, and I used Susanoo for it too."

"Who did you combined powers with?" Natsu asked.

"I will tell you about it later if you are interested."

The magic arrays constructed by Etherion's firing sequence started to increase its brightness as the flaming arrow from Susanoo began to burn even more fiercely. Etherion would be firing at any moment now. Elden put a hand on Natsu's shoulder, grabbing his attention.

"Natsu, on the count of three. 3, 2, 1!"

" **Unison Raid: Fire Dragon Warrior's Exploding Flame Arrow!** "

* * *

"They...They actually did it. They stopped Etherion." Simon croaked out.

"It's El and that flame breath after all, I'm not surprised. If anyone here can stop Etherion from firing, it's them." Gray replied as he took a seat back on the small boat where the lot of them are squeezing themselves in.

Gray had reunited with the Strauss siblings and Yukino. They also found Erza's previous nakama trapped in a barrier prison on the edge of the island where the Tower of Heaven was situated. Together with Loke, Gray shipped the four unwilling prisoners onto the boat they found together with the rest of Fairy Tail. They were forced to set sail into the ocean the moment they spotted Etherion. They were very worried for the remaining three members when they still didn't appear when the tower started to collapse and panicked when they spotted Etherion in the sky. Their anxiety worsened when they saw a huge warrior avatar with wings taking into the skies flying towards where Etherion is. Mira had identified that warrior to be one of Elden's technique, one that combined both offense and defense to ridiculous degrees.

They knew Natsu was with Elden when the warrior was suddenly coated in flames and they realised that the both of them were trying to achieve Unison Raid in their attempt to prevent Etherion from firing upon the tower. They surmised that it was an attempt to protect Erza, who is still nowhere to be seen, and hence she must still be in that tower somewhere.

The arrow that the duo fired pierced through the magic arrays that were stacked upon one another in the sky, leaving a flaming trail of explosions in its wake. The flames from the arrow lit the magic arrays it pierced through with fire, which burned through the rest of the magic arrays that weren't destroyed by the arrow's pierce, leaving nothing in the air but a brilliant display of raging fire that consumed the night, turning it as bright as day.

The ethereal warrior began its descend back to the island where the Tower of Heaven was as it picked someone up from there, presumably Erza. A huge sword materialised in the warrior's hand as it used it to chop the tower up into many smaller unrecognisable pieces, preventing anyone from reviving the R System. The warrior then flew to their boat, and Gray watched with visible relief when their three remaining guildmates landed on their boat just as the warrior avatar dissipated into thin air. Both Elden and Natsu looked a little drained, but otherwise unharmed.

"Did you see that pervy popsicle? Bet you can't do anything like that!" Natsu exclaimed as he pointed at Gray with fire in his eyes.

"Hmph. That was an impressive show of magic, I give you that. But I'm sure that El did most of the work, not you. So you have nothing to boast about. All you did was to add a little fire."

"What did you say, squinty eyes? You blind or something?" Natsu growled out as he butted heads with Gray.

"Are you deaf? Droopy eyes? Are you getting hearing loss in old age?"

 _WHACK!_

The unruly pair was silenced by Mirajane, who smashed their heads together viciously with her sweet smile still plastered on her face and let their unconscious bodies fall limply from her grip. Yukino concluded that Gray and Natsu must have irritated Mirajane as well, some of her she-demon personality is leaking out.

"Thank you, Mira. Those two are giving me a headache."

"Anything for you, dear." Mirajane replied as she walked up to Elden and gave him a quick hug. "Are you and Erza alright? And is that Jellal? He sure looks like Siegrain from the Ten Wizard Saints."

"It is a long story." Erza interrupted. "I will tell you guys all about it later but right now we should get moving. We stopped Etherion from firing the first shot, but I don't think Elden and Natsu have managed to destroy it, it may fire again."

"I will row the boat." Elfman volunteered. "Such a task is not difficult for a real man like me!"

"I will lighten the boat's weight with Libra. I have recovered enough magic to summon her for a short while."

"Juvia can help with water magic too."

"Elfman, if you need help, I can summon Taurus to help you too."

"Let us out of here!" Simon pleaded from within the confines of the barrier prison. "We can help as well! Please!"

"Elden..." Erza begged as she let the unconscious Jellal down from her shoulders.

"Fine." Elden grumbled as he willed the barrier prison away with a wave of his hand. "But I still don't trust them in not doing anything stupid. If they try anything funny or stupid again I will feed them to the sharks."

"We managed to establish a link with Master using a communication lacrima we found." Lisanna called out. "He said he will meet us at Akane Beach. He tried to stop the council from firing Etherion, but he was only successful for a short while. Master also said that something had happened to the Magic Council building at Era, but we should prepare ourselves for a round of questioning regardless. We did thwarted the council's attempt in firing Etherion."

"It will be alright even if we really succeeded in destroying Etherion." Elden replied as he sat on a corner of the boat with Mirajane and he closed his eyes to get some rest. "It wouldn't be the first time Fairy Tail had destroyed public property anyway."

* * *

"So you are saying that Jellal is innocent for all of his crimes?! This is preposterous!"

Master Makarov had picked us up at Akane Beach like he promised and immediately used a pair of anti-magic cuffs on Jellal as a form of precautionary measure. After knowing what the rest of Erza's previous nakamas did, he advised them to go into hiding for now. The council is now in a mess and desperate to find scapegoats to pin the blame on, it will be in their best interests to escape and run away as far as possible until the whole incident died down.

From what I knew from Master, who got his information from Yajima, Ultear destroyed the council building with her Arc of Time, effectively paralysing the entire council for a short while. Siegrain, who we now knew was an overpowered Thought Projection of Jellal, was forcefully dispelled shortly after the Etherion was primed and ready to fire, which most likely happened when I released Jellal from his possession. Siegrain's sudden disappearance was the trigger that prompted Ultear to suddenly knock all the employees out and she pressed the button herself to fire Etherion and then demolished the entire building without warning. Thankfully (or not, depending on who you asked), none of the council members died from the attack and a temporary building that serves as a makeshift headquarter is set up near to the destroyed one at Era for the council to resume its normal activities as soon as possible.

It is also where a trial is currently held and where I am now. The council members are currently questioning everyone who were at the Tower of Heaven except for Erza's previous nakamas, who had made their escape as per Makarov's advice and thus the council were unaware of their existence. The entire Fairy Tail group who were there insisted that a few of Jellal's lackeys were the ones that kidnapped Erza and Happy and we never knew who they were since we never met them at the Tower of Heaven. It was a cover story that we came up with earlier before Master brought us here for the hearing as per the council's orders.

Jellal had also woken up and he looks very lost as he was escorted away by the Rune Knights by the time we reached Era a few days later. He acts and behaves very differently from when we first met him in the Tower of Heaven, but he had accepted the fact that he was being controlled for the past eight years of his life, and is ready to face the punishment for his crimes.

Right now, I am arguing for Jellal's case, trying to prove that he is innocent as he was unknowingly controlled due to Possession magic casted on him without anyone's knowledge.

"The evidences are all there, honoured councilmen." I replied with that usual lazy tone that I was known for but I added a hint of disrespect this time when talking to these stubborn bulls. "Traces of Possession magic can still be found on him. My guild master, Makarov Dreyar, also a member of the Ten Wizard Saints, confirmed my suspicions as well when we first brought the unconscious Jellal to him. _You_ guys did your own tests and you arrived at the same results, I know as much. I was there when your mages took Jellal off us and conducted a test on the spot when I told them my suspicions. If I were to hazard a guess, Ultear Milkovich, the one who forcefully fired Etherion and destroyed your headquarters, was the one who planted the Possession magic on him. Such magic needs to be constantly maintained if the user wants to control the victim for a long period of time and it has been eight years since Jellal was first possessed. The only one who have the power, skill, and was constantly around him was Ultear. It has to be her, in case you haven't realised it yet."

"Mind your manners when you speak to us, boy! We are the Magic Council! All we need is your testimony, we don't need your input on how we should run things!"

"I beg your pardon." I replied with a roll of my eyes and made sure that my voice was thickly layered with sarcasm. "Sorry if I cannot be courteous to the ones who nearly _killed_ me and my nakamas by firing a fucking _satellite cannon_ , even when the target was already in a near-destroyed state thanks to our guild's, _Fairy Tail_ , efforts." I made sure to stress the name of my guild to piss them off even further. "It was a very poor judgement on your part, so I'm sorry if I cannot answer your questions politely since I am currently talking to the people who would have been my murderers if Natsu and I did not take any further actions. I have completely lost faith in your ability to lead, and I won't be the only one to feel that way. Your actions nearly aided the true mastermind behind this incident to revive Zeref and could have killed many other innocents, myself included, if we didn't stopped you. I believe Jellal had already come clean and informed you the specifics of how the Etherion was instrumental in reviving Zeref, the R System could have been activated by your hands. You guys are just incapable and a bunch of morons. Why should I answer your questions?"

"You-!"

"Since we are discussing about Jellal, we might as well clarify a few things." I cut off what's-his-name before he could talk my ears off. "We have already established that he was being controlled, as unbelievable as it sounds since he had the strength of a Wizard Saint, but it's the truth. Don't you dare tell me he wasn't controlled, the evidences are all there, if you try to hide any evidences of the truth it will only show the world how corrupt you guys are." I said the last sentence as a warning to them. "According to the Criminal Law for Mages, section 25, part 1a, if a convicted mage was proven to be controlled or possessed by another through magic from another individual, thereby robbing away any sense of freewill from the controlled mage or caused the mage to be controlled without the victim knowing, the controlled mage is innocent, and all charges will fall onto the mage who was doing the controlling. In Jellal's case, he was being unknowingly controlled by another individual, which we all know is most likely Ultear, and thus any and all charges of the crimes that Jellal had committed should fall on her. Jellal is a victim as well, he may have committed crimes, but it was done without him knowing that he was being possessed. You should have seen how he acts around others now that his mind is cleared, it is a far cry from his usual self. According to the law that was written since the founding of the Magic Council, Jellal is _innocent_."

"Such insolence! There's no way-"

"Michello, he is right." The current Chairman, Crawford Seam, said as he held up a hand to stop the cat-man from ranting. "According to the statutes and laws written by our forefathers and predecessors, we cannot convict Jellal of anything." The Chairman gazed at me, before continuing.

"Even if Jellal is innocent, we cannot let him run free. An individual with the strength of a Wizard Saint who was involved in dark magic and rituals that were closely related to Zeref, even if he was being controlled, needs to be closely monitored. The council will need to take Jellal in-"

"Actually." I interjected once more. "I have a suggestion regarding that issue..."

* * *

"I can't believe you talked to the Magic Council the way you did and get off with nothing but a slap on the wrist." Master Makarov grumbled as he walked up to my side the moment I was finished with the questioning. He was spectating everyone's questioning and I was the last one to be questioned, so he got out of the room with enthusiasm that rivaled my own the moment my questioning was done.

"Aren't you going to reprimand me for giving out a suggestion like that without consulting you first?" I replied as I raised an eyebrow at the wrinkly old man that I held in great respect. "In my defense, I only thought of it halfway into the questioning, so I couldn't consult with you beforehand."

"No, your suggestion was fine." Makarov said as he patted my back. "It is a splendid idea, a good idea that can help a victim that was ensnared by the dark to walk in the light again. Good job on that." Makarov cleared his throat before looking at me again. "Although I have to ask, when did you learn about criminal law?"

"I read a lot." I replied with my trademarked shrug. "I happened to come across that particular legislation by accident and I once joked to Levy that it might be a useful excuse to get out of the council's wrath in case one of our guild members destroyed some property that is too expensive to be ignored. I wasn't expecting for it to come in handy, to be perfectly honest, but it worked."

"You have a good head on your shoulders, Elden, and you know your way around politics." Master complimented me as I took a gulp of water from my water flask, all the talking I did to convince the Magic Council left my throat parched and dry. "Have you ever considered in becoming the Fourth Master of Fairy Tail?"

I spit out the water that I had been drinking and Master had to step aside to avoid getting drenched. What? _Me?_ Fourth Master of Fairy Tail?

"No damn way." I said as I crossed my arms in an 'X' and faced Master. No way am I going to be swarmed in paperwork and deal with complaints of property damage 24/7. "No offense, Master, but I don't want to live the rest of my life dealing with paperwork. You will have better luck asking Gildarts instead." I suggested. "Actually, Erza and Mira could have been possible candidates as well, they just need more experience. Laxus can be a wonderful guild master too, once he got over his rebellious phase."

"Erza and Mira is too young, and none of them are as strong as you, at least not for a long while yet." Master said as he shook his head and continued to walk forward towards the exit of the building and I followed as I walked behind him. "And don't talk about Laxus, you know how he is."

"I believe he will be someone who is comparable to a Wizard Saint once he got over his issues, not only in strength, but also in both the heart and mind." I said as I took another sip of water from my water flask. "He loves the guild deeply, in his own way."

"Maybe." Master muttered. "Have you thought of how we are going to break the news to the rest of them?"

"Well..." I trailed off as I scratched my chin in thought. "It couldn't be too hard, right?"

* * *

" **WHAT?!** "

"Yeah, you guys didn't hear us wrongly, he's coming back to Fairy Tail with us." I said.

The compromise Master and I had with the Magic Council ended up in us taking custody of Jellal. It's like what the Magic Council said. Although Jellal may be argued as innocent and free of all criminal charges, and that legally, such a scenario would not warrant him an imprisonment behind bars, we have to take into account that he was being manipulated for eight long years without anyone the wiser. It does not help that Jellal was an ex member of both the Ten Wizard Saints and the Magic Council who knew many of their secrets even if his title had been stripped the moment we brought him to the Rune Knights. There's also the slight possibility that there may be unknown lingering side effects of the Possession magic that may lead him to do evil acts again, and it was the main reason why the Chairman was adamant that Jellal needs to be closely monitored. The council was of the idea of simply throwing Jellal behind bars until they are sure the Possession magic is truly gone, and I am of the opinion that if they had their way, Jellal will never see the outside world again. Hence, my suggestion was that Fairy Tail will be the one in charge of keeping an eye on him. Fairy Tail had capable mages to do so. We had proved that we have the capability to restrain people of Jellal's strength given our display back at the Tower of Heaven and nearly destroyed Etherion.

Oh right, I forgot to mention that the Unison Raid I performed with Natsu actually nearly destroyed the Etherion cannon. According to the council members, the cannon would have been toast if we have aimed the arrow a little bit more to the right. As of now, the cannon had nothing more than a long scratch on its side and is still in working condition. The council did not press any charges against us for property damage. They knew that they had fucked up big time and is willing to close the issue about the Etherion as fast as possible, not wanting the public to know more about their failings. This also allowed me to argue Jellal's case in his favour as much as I could possibly do.

Back to the topic on Jellal. After much debating and arguing, the council was willing to let Jellal to be on probation for five years, with me and Erza being the main ones keeping an eye on him. Jellal can take part in jobs like any normal mage, but at least one S Class mage have to be with him whenever he is out of the guild building. He will also have to stay with one of our members, preferably S Class or someone close to that level, to allow us to monitor him. He is also not allowed to be given an S Class title until the five years are over, and it is only after the five years are over that he will truly be a free man once more.

Five years of being closely watched, that is the price that Jellal have to pay in order to regain his freedom once more. It is a lot better than what happened to him in canon, so I agreed. It would not be wise to push my luck any further than this.

"That Jellal guy is going back with us?! He tried to kill us for Mavis's sake!"

"He was being controlled, Gray. I believed we have told you that." Master said as he stood beside me with his arms crossed, facing the rest of the group. "All we have to do is to make sure that the Possession magic within him is truly gone. Jellal is not a bad person at heart, it was the Possession magic that tainted him with evil, he is a victim like everyone else."

"Eh, I think the arrangement is fine." Natsu said as he put his hands behind his head in a relaxed manner. "Do you think he will fight me if I asked for one? He was a Wizard Saint, that guy ought to be strong!"

"Anyone else have other disagreements to voice out?" I looked around the group. "None? So am I right to say that we can finally go collect tattoo-face and then head back to Magnolia? I don't know about you guys, but all I want right now is to go back home and lie on my bed and sleep for the next thre- _OOF_!"

"T-Thank you, Master, Elden." Erza sobbed as she grabbed Master and I into a tight hug and slammed our heads onto her breastplate. "You don't know how much this means to me."

I wriggled my way out of Erza's clutches and nursed my bruised forehead. "It's nothing much, really." I replied on Master's behalf, seeing that he is currently lying on the floor and unconscious from the impact of hitting his head onto Erza's armour. "But you have to watch Jellal for the next five years, which is a pretty long probation period. I can help too, but I can already foresee that you will be Jellal's watcher most of the time."

"It's fine." Erza said as she tried to wipe away the tears of joy from her eyes. "It is a small price to pay for his freedom. I'm just glad that he is finally back, and that he isn't evil."

"Oww... what happened?"

"Welcome back to the world of the living, Master." I replied dryly as Yukino and Lisanna tried to help the small aged man get back up on his feet.

"Erm..." Juvia, who was silent this whole time, fidgeted uncomfortably as she made her presence known. "Can Juvia... _canJuviajoinFairyTailaswell_?" Juvia spoke the last part of her sentence so fast that we all had trouble trying to make out what she said.

"Of course, why not?" Master apparently caught onto Juvia's words where the rest of us had failed as he replied Juvia while rubbing his forehead at the same time, which is now nursing a huge growing lump. "Welcome to Fairy Tail, Juvia."

Juvia gave a squeal of joy and she immediately latched on to her Gray-sama with literal hearts in her eyes, saying how she can finally spend time with her Gray-sama for eternity. Wow, I thought the hearts in the eyes was just an anime thing, I never thought it will be possible in real life. Lucy wisely dodged out of there and hid herself behind Mira and Lisanna, much to their unconcealed amusement.

"Alright, we have dallied here long enough." Master said as he gave a stretch and an audible pop of his bones could be heard. "Let's collect Jellal and go back home to Fairy Tail."

"AHHHHH! I DON'T WANT TO SIT ON THE TRAIN!" Natsu exclaimed before suddenly kneeling by my feet and giving me a very pitiful look with tears in his eyes. "EL! USE THE WARRIOR THING TO FLY ME HOME! I DON'T WANT TO SIT ON THE TRAIN!"

"You really are hopeless, you know that?" Lucy said as she put her hands on her hip. "You can go up against anyone but you cannot even handle a measly train ride."

"Make sure to sit far away from me." Gray grunted. "I don't want to be drenched with your puke."

"Juvia can sit beside Gray-sama! Forever~~~" Gray shivered in cold sweat as Juvia latched onto his left arm in a death grip, and Gray looked as if he was pondering whether sitting beside Natsu would be a better option instead. Sitting beside his long time rival on the train journey back home suddenly sounds like a very enticing idea.

"I want to sit next to Mira-nee!" Yukino said as she bounced to Mira and hugged her. She turned around to give me a stink eye. "El-niichan always snores when he fall asleep on the train! I can't even rest properly whenever I sit next to him. Mira-nee, do something about it!"

"Eh, I can't help it." I replied as I stretched my neck. "For some reason I only ever snore when I am sleeping on the train."

"Maybe you can bring along some ear plugs with you the next time you go out on a mission with El?" Mira suggested as she patted Yukino on the head.

"PLEASE! EL! FLY ME HOME!"

"Nah, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. Sorry, Natsu, but this is for your own good. Think of it as training to be an S Class mage."

"EL!"

"Just be a real man and take the train ride!"

"Aye!"

"Elf-niichan! It's not like Natsu didn't try before! He is just really bad at transportation!"

Our entire group had made our way to the area where we were supposed to collect Jellal by now. Jellal is currently in a temporary holding cell with anti-magic cuffs around his wrists and is heavily watched by many Rune Knights stationed to keep an eye on him. The moment they spotted Master, they saluted him and let him through into the cell while the rest of us waited outside. A few moments later, Master returned with Jellal in tow, who is still looking a little bewildered.

"Erza...I..."

Erza said nothing as she dashed forward to hug Jellal while trying her best not to cry again. Jellal was stunned for a moment, but returned the hug the moment he regained his senses. They both sobbed for a short while as they hugged each other, and we stood aside in silence to let the both of them enjoy their much needed privacy.

Erza slowly let go of Jellal and took a step backwards, and at that moment, I saw the brightest smile that Erza had ever gave.

"Welcome back, Jellal."

* * *

 **AN: Surprise, surprise. Sorry if this chapter felt a little disjointed, I wrote bits and pieces of it here and there whenever I had the chance to do so. I think that many of you may have been disappointed for not reading about a big fight, but I feel that not everything has to be resolved with your fists. The world will be a much better place if there were less fighting and more understanding towards each other. If there is an easier way to solve things without fighting, why not? I also have to give Elden some sort of defense against mind-reading type of magic at some point in case I wanted to write about the Oracion Seis arc due to the presence of Cobra and Angel, and I thought that if Elden did know magic that is able to protect his mind, it would make sense for him to know how to dispel a possession. He is an S Class mage after all, and most S Class mages knows at least a few spells or other types of magic. The ToH arc is just a good point in time to introduce a form of mind protection magic.**

 **I have always thought that Jellal is a very unlucky person. To be finally freed from slavery, only to be possessed and live in a life of lie for the next eight years, got himself into a coma, then arrested and imprisoned, then was broken out again by the very same person that caused him to be a prisoner in the first place. He then lived a life as an escaped convict for more than seven years before getting pardoned. That's nearly twenty years, two decades, of living the life of an escaped convict. Jellal wasn't totally in the wrong, nor was he truly evil, he was forced by circumstances. What was wrong was the world and government that did nothing to prevent these things from happening. If you think about it, I can't believe that the Tower of Heaven managed to stay hidden from the council's eyes when it was located near the border of Fiore. Any country would keep a keen eye on their borders and somehow the council and the royal family missed it. If that does not explain their incompetency, then it means that someone high up in the chain of command is involved as well.**

 **Given how sad Jellal's life is in canon, I thought that it would be good if I could spare Jellal all the agony and misery. In the end, he is a victim just like every other slave that were kidnapped to the Tower of Heaven.**

 **I just hoped that the addition of Jellal into FT will not make FT too op, but then again Hiro Mashima always made the FT members too op, and it is kind of hard to nerf them when you knew what kind of mages they will grow up to be in the end.**

 **The future of this story is not yet set in stone, but I already have an idea on how I want to write a different future for FT with this story. I just hope that my idea will be a good one, and that FT can win their battles not only through the 'power of friendship', but by their own strength and wit as well.**

 **I hoped you enjoyed the story thus far.**


	9. Chapter 9- What's Going On?

"Alright, let's stop here for now." I said as Gray lay in an exhausted heap on the ground, panting for air.

"I... I can still continue!" Gray proclaimed as he gritted his teeth and tried to stand up again, ready for another round.

"No, you are not." I countered as I stretched my own limbs. "It's nearing breakfast anyway and I want to eat. Want to go to the guild together? There should be some good food the cooks there can whip up for us. I'm starving."

"Uh... How about... Ah! The eatery that just opened near Lucy's apartment! I heard that there are some good food there that can usually only be found in the other kingdoms!" Gray suggested nervously.

I looked at our resident stripper in suspicion. This behaviour is very unlike him.

"Nah, I think I will head to the guild instead. I will try out that eatery some other time. See ya."

"El! Wait!"

I ignored Gray as I flew lazily into the air with my magic. I had found Gray waiting outside my apartment door the moment I stepped out of my apartment to start off my daily morning training I usually do before breakfast. He asked me to help train him in molding magic, which I agreed. Gray is good, but ice and barriers are still fundamentally different in nature even if both our magic are classified as molding magic. It's precisely this reason that I found his behaviour kind of weird, Gray had never requested to train with me before. He knew the differences between our magics, there's not much that I can impart to him.

Oh well, never mind that. What's important is to hurry up and fill my empty stomach with food. Too bad I can't eat Mira's cooking today, she told me yesterday that she had to rush off for a last minute photo shoot for the Sorcerer today and would be gone the entire day. By sheer coincidence, the rest of the Monster Legion also had their own personal things to do today and that means that I will have the entire of today to myself, which I will probably spend by reading a book in peace at a corner of our newly constructed guild building that was finished while we were at Akane Beach. The new building is magnificent, and it took all of our breaths away when we returned to the guild after the incident with the Tower of Heaven only a few days ago.

Upon Juvia's insistence, Master made a detour and picked up Gajeel as well while we were on our way back to Magnolia. The rest of the group were still angry at him for what he had done, but I supported Master's decision and stood firm with him. Gajeel was the one who destroyed our old guild building and hurt Team Shadowgear, but it was done on the orders of his previous guild master. Gajeel isn't bad or evil at heart, he is just lonely, which he hid with his crass behaviour.

The smell of food wafted into my nose as I neared the guild, I am currently only a few streets away and I am eager to dig into something tasty.

What should I get for breakfast today?

* * *

Gray watched helplessly as Elden floated off into the air and out of reach. Damn! He still didn't managed to buy enough time to hold Elden back long enough! He needs to prevent Elden from going to the guild today for as long as possible! Everyone in the guild will skin him alive if they knew that he failed to hold Elden back!

Time to call for reinforcements.

Gray put a finger to his temple as he attempted to speak to Warren using the telepathic link that Warren had established between the two of them.

 _"Hello? Warren speaking."_

 _"Warren! It's me, Gray! I failed to delay El from going back to the guild! He will reach the guild soon!"_

 _"WHAT?! Mavis! What do we do now?!"_

 _"Request reinforcement from someone who is free! We need to stop Elden from reaching the guild at all costs until it's done!"_

 _"I'm on it! Warren over and out!"_

* * *

I was only a single street away from the guild when someone called my name.

"Elden! Over here!"

I turned to look towards the ground, and saw a pair of red and blue haired couple. Erza is waving frantically at me. What got her so excited?

I got down onto the ground and I waved a greeting at Erza and Jellal.

"Morning, Erza, Jellal."

"Morning." They greeted in unison. Jellal and Erza smiled at me and I returned the gesture. Jellal had quickly fit himself into Fairy Tail despite what he did. The guild members were understanding enough and were sympathetic to his plight. We threw a huge party for the inclusion of the three new members into our guild.

Yes, we included Gajeel as well, even if most of the members did so begrudgingly.

"Elden, where are you going?" Erza asked while sweating profusely much to my confusion. I took a quick glance around. No one suspicious is around us and the temperature in the morning in Magnolia is actually pretty cool. Why is she sweating like that?

"I wanted to get something to eat for breakfast at the guild hall." I replied. "What about you guys?"

"We were about to get something to eat for breakfast as well. However, the both of us are planning to go somewhere else to eat our breakfast. Would you like to join us?" Jellal answered respectfully. He had held me in high regard ever since I released him from the possession and argued for his lighter sentence against the Magic Council, who is rumoured to be disbanded soon after their actions with Etherion. Jellal and Erza had been inseparable ever since we left Era. I don't think it will be long until they become an official couple.

"It's ok, don't let me intrude on your alone time." I answered them. "I will just grab a quick bite at the guild hall and then spend my entire day there reading my book. I had just bought a new book that was just published and I'm dying to read it."

"Y-You can join us, Elden!" Erza replied forcefully and is sweating even more profusely now. Is she nervous? I have a sneaking suspicion that she is hiding something from me. Erza had never been good at lying and doing so often resulted in her having jitters and sweating profusely. "Jellal and I will like to show our gratitude for your help! Isn't that right, Jellal?" Erza elbowed Jellal forcefully that earned him a grunt of pain.

"Y-Yes. Please accept our token of gratitude, Elden." Jellal spoke as he tried to nurse his definitely bruised rib. Erza had never been gentle when it comes to controlling her monstrous strength.

Without further ado, Erza forcefully grabbed onto one of my arms and dragged me away.

I guess this is how my breakfast for today will be settled.

* * *

Breakfast with the couple was...interesting, to say the least. For some reason, anywhere that Erza tried to drag me to was filled to the brim with customers and there's a long queue at almost every eating establishment. When we finally found a place to eat, some idiot attempted to commit a day-time robbery in the cafe where we were eating.

Needless to say, Erza took out the robber.

Unsurprisingly, she took out the robber together with an entire section of a wall in the cafe.

The owner of the cafe wasn't sure if he should be relieved or enraged at the outcome. On one hand, we prevented the loss of his money by apprehending the murderer. On the other hand, the owner will also be losing money as he need to repair the damages to his cafe, and I could tell that he wasn't sure if he wants to hold us accountable for the damage given that the damage was incurred in Erza's efforts to stop the robber from robbing him.

Luckily, it seems that the robber had a small bounty on him, which the Rune Knights informed us when we turned the robber in to them. The bounty was enough to cover for the damage caused by Erza, so the owner of the cafe accepted the bounty as reparations for the damage and offered us another serving of his famous cheesecake as thanks.

Erza looked as if she entered blissful paradise the moment she received another serving of strawberry cheesecake, much to the amusement of Jellal and I.

"Thank you for the meal." I said as I clapped my hands once after I finished my breakfast. "I won't intrude on you guys any longer, have fun. I will see you guys back at the guild."

With that, I turned around and flew into the air the moment I walked out of the cafe with Erza calling out my name. Weird, why is everyone so clingy towards me today?

* * *

"What do we do now, Jellal?! We cannot let Elden go back to the guild just yet! There's no way the preparations will be finished by now!"

"I wasn't expecting him to be able to fly. Should I give chase to him in the air?"

"That's probably not a good idea. We will raise his suspicions if we give chase like that. I think he is already suspicious of us."

"You have never been very good at lying. I see that some things still hasn't change."

"I-I'm sorry. Please hit me as apology!"

Jellal sweatdropped as Erza bow her head at an angle in his direction.

"That's not the issue here." He said as he straightened Erza's back. "I think we need to inform the rest that we failed as well. It would be disastrous if Elden made his way back to the guild now."

"R-Right! I will contact Warren!"

* * *

 _"Guys! Erza and Jellal failed as well! We need backup ASAP! El might be reaching the guild anytime soon!"_

 _"Leave it to me! When dealing with a bookworm, all you need is a place full of books!"_

 _"That's a great idea, Levy! We will leave it to you then!"_

 _"Alrighty! Gajeel! You are with me!"_

 _"What? Don't drag me along you shrimp! OI!"_

 _"Shut up and stop complaining. We need your nose to help track El down."_

* * *

"El!"

I was halfway through the town center when I saw Levy running up to me with a very unwilling Gajeel beside her. Wow, they sure didn't take long to let bygones be bygones. Jet and Droy can learn a thing or two in this regard, they still hold a grudge when it comes to the Iron Dragon Slayer.

"Levy, Gajeel. What's up?"

"I got wind that there might be a book fair coming up at the southern part of town! Will you like to come with us?" Levy said as she looked at me with those big pleading eye of hers.

A huge question mark formed in my mind. Since when did Levy got wind of a book fair that even I didn't know about? Usually I am the one informing her of any book fair that comes into town. And since when is Gajeel interested in books?

"I take it as a yes then!" Levy didn't give me a chance to respond as I was once again physically dragged away from the direction of the guild building. What's with my luck today? It is like the fates are preventing me to step anywhere near the guild building on today of all days!

I stole a glance at Gajeel, who caught my gaze and gave a silent shrug as he walked behind us. Did Levy drag him out here against his wish? Sounds like a likely explanation.

* * *

"It's...it's over?"

"You didn't know? I thought I had informed you of this book fair before the Monster Legion went for our mission that ended us up in the Tower of Heaven. I assumed that you would have bought a few books by now before the whole sale is over."

"I...I...I thought..."

"Tch, shrimp, you dragged us here for nothing."

"Well, now that we got over it, I really want to go back to the guild now." I said as I gave a yawn. Levy had dragged me across to the other side of Magnolia only to find the book fair she was talking about to have already packed up and left for the next town. "I need to go claim a quiet spot in the guild hall to read in silence before all the good spots have been claimed. You guys want a lift?"

"Uh...I...We...I mean..."

Huh, it's unlike Levy to be at a loss of words like that. What's going on? Unless...

"Don't tell me you two are on a date?"

"WHAT?! NO WAY!"

The two of them denied the accusation at exactly the same time, with the same expression on their faces and with the same words. How cute.

"Eh, personally I feel that the park or the lake behind the guild is a good spot for a first date. You might bore Gajeel with books, Levy, so bringing him to a bookstore probably isn't the best idea for a first date."

I watched on in amusement as the two of them sputtered at my remark. Ah, I miss fun times like these. It's not everyday that I get to tease Levy and get away with it, the girl has a surprisingly sharp tongue and an even quicker mind. It's hard to win an argument against her.

"IT'S NOT LIKE THAT!"

"DAMN RIGHT IT ISN'T! NO WAY I'M GOING ON A DATE WITH THE MIDGET!"

"WHO ARE YOU CALLING A MIDGET!"

"Geez, the two of you need to get all these sexual tension out of your system with the way you two yell at each other." I answered flippantly as I watched their interaction. "If you really want to know, Gildarts told me once when he was dead drunk in the guild hall that there is a cheap inn at the side of the town over there that has a pretty cheap rate for a quickie. Don't know how true it is, never been there myself. But you two might want to consider his opi-"

"EL!"

"Oops. Was I not supposed to know about the relationship between the two of you? Don't worry, my lips are sealed. I won't tell anyone if you two really go there for a quickie anyway, it's none of my business whether you two, _ahem_." I said as I coughed into my fist.

"Tha-That's not it! Gajeel wanted to find you for something! I'm just tagging along and that I thought the book fair might be something you are interested in since it is along the way!"

"What?! Me finding the Aegis for something? Wasn't it- OW!" Gajeel cried in pain as Levy stomped on his foot _hard_. She's wearing heels too, that ought to hurt, metal scales on Gajeel's body or not.

"You. Wanted. To. Find. El. For. Something. Remember?" Levy said as she threatened Gajeel with a deceptively sweet smile on her face. Why does it feel like everyone is keeping me in the dark from something today? Did I do anything wrong?

"Uh...Oh. Yeah, I mean, um." Gajeel looked flustered as he tried to find words to say to me, and I'm secretly enjoying the show the two of them are putting up. "Ah ha! Fight me! Aegis! I want to see the powers of an S Class mage in Fairy Tail!" He said as he waved his arms menacingly to challenge me.

I nearly facepalmed. Gajeel isn't cut out to be an actor. I doubt that he really wanted to find me in the first place, he was probably dragged along by Levy. But still, I don't mind going along with their little act. I have time to spare.

"Alright." I replied as I observed our surroundings. We are in the middle of a street and there are nobody else here. Perfect.

"Tell you what. Each of us only have one attempt to attack the other while the other defends. Then we swap roles. We will decide the outcome of the match like that. I'm feeling a little lazy to go for a full-blown fight."

"What? No way! Fight me properly!"

"Take it or leave it." I shrugged. "I really wanted to start reading on my new book today, but for some reason I keep getting delayed. Try not to damage the surroundings, Master doesn't need anymore complaints about property damage."

Levy looked as if she wanted to say something, but she stopped herself. Gajeel just charged himself with magic power as he accepted my demand. He took a deep breath. I know what attack he is trying to pull off now.

"Iron Dragon's Roar!"

Gajeel released a powerful breath of air filled with sharp metal shards at my direction. I simply raised a huge wall of rectangular barrier to block his attack.

"What?! No way! I haven't seen a barrier that powerful before! My attack didn't even scratch your barrier!"

"Hey. I'm someone who managed to stop a Jupiter cannon. Why are you so surprised?" I retorted as I stretched my stiff neck. Maybe it's time for me to replace the pillow at home and get a more comfortable pillow?

Gajeel covered himself in metal scales as he beckoned for me to fire my own attack. In response, I materialised a single pink colour, diamond shaped barrier about the size of a finger nail. It's the kind of barrier that I employed in my Senbonzakura technique.

"Oi, Aegis. Are you kidding me? What can a small barrier like that do?"

"It can cut you up." I replied dryly. "Watch."

Without any warning, I shot the small piece of barrier at Gajeel's arm before he had time to respond. The petal left a shallow bleeding cut on his arm despite the metal scales protecting Gajeel.

"What?" Gajeel muttered in disbelief as he raised his arm to check the wound. I purposely let the petal skimmed the surface of his skin. From this alone, he understands that if I so wish to, I can send the petal at his vitals and he cannot do a single thing to prevent it from slicing his throat or piercing his heart. His defense isn't as strong as mine. Gajeel is still nowhere up to my level yet.

"There. I better get going now. See you. Don't worry about your date, I won't tell anyone that you guys decided to have a quickie, I promise."

I flew high into the air with my magic as I heard the screams of protest behind me from the ground. It feels good to mess around with the guild members from time to time.

Now, time to head back to the guild.

* * *

 _"Mayday! Mayday! Levy and Gajeel just contacted me! They had failed too! El is making his way here once again!"_

 _"What?! That was fast! What are they doing?"_

 _"We don't have enough time! We aren't done yet!"_

 _"Yosh! Happy and I will go! Operation delay El, start!"_

 _"AYE!"_

 _"Try to hold back El as long as possible, Natsu!"_

* * *

"ELLLL!"

A roar of my name caught my attention as Natsu flew up next to me with Happy carrying him into the air. I have a bad feeling about this.

"Fight me, El! You promised me back at the Tower of Heaven! Use the warrior thing!"

"I can't use Stage III in Magnolia, Natsu. I told you that before." I replied. Why is everyone seemingly against me in my quest to reach the guild hall today?

"Then use the half body version! Come on!" Natsu said as he flew behind me and tried to push my back to herd me off in a certain direction.

"Natsu! Happy! El!"

The three of us looked down towards the ground and saw Lucy calling for us while taking deep breaths of air. She must have ran here.

"Lucy! You follow us here?" Natsu said as he shouted down below.

"Of course I did! Who knows what you will destroy if you are left alone!"

I tried to sneak off while Natsu and Lucy are having their conversation, but Natsu grabbed me by my shoulder and flew off in a direction and I was forced to follow.

I closed my eyes and sigh. It will probably be faster if I just go with the flow.

* * *

"You lost! In a single hit too!"

Lucy stayed at a side to spectate the spar between Natsu and El. Both of them are accomplished and famous mages and she was expecting an exciting fight. Natsu charged in with flames like how he usually did. El simply called forth a gigantic rectangular block of barrier and let it fall onto Natsu like a meteor and pressed him flat onto the floor, defeating Natsu in a single move.

"Winner, El!" Happy, the referee, announced as he wave a flag in El's direction. Where did the cat get the flag from?

"Better luck next time, Natsu." El said as he walked past the unconscious pyromaniac in the direction of the guild. "See you later, Lucy, Happy."

El disappeared even before Lucy had the time to react. AH! This wasn't supposed to happen! Natsu was supposed to delay El for at least another hour!

Lucy contacted Warren with the telepathic link he set up for her with his magic. The rest of the guild needs to know!

 _"Warren! Lucy here! Natsu failed too! He got taken out in one hit!"_

 _"What?! This isn't supposed to happen! What happened to his promised two hours of time that he will buy us?!"_

 _"Aye sir, El's too strong."_ Happy chipped in.

 _"Someone! Stop El!"_

 _"Heh, what a bunch of useless fools. Guess I will personally stop El from making his way here. Watch and learn, kiddos!"_

* * *

I watched as Cana walked up to me drunkenly from the opposite end of the street with a huge wine barrel under one of her arms. I have a feeling I know where this is going by now.

She is also going to drag me away from the guild hall for whatever reasons, isn't she?

"El!" Cana sang out as she slung an arm around me, the smell of liquor assaulting my nose the moment she got close to me. "Come! Let's drink!"

I looked towards the sky.

"Cana, it's nearing noon. How are you already drunk?"

"It's always a good time - _hic_ \- to get drunk!"

I sighed as I tried to walk forward, only for Cana to cling onto me even worse than how Happy clings onto his fish.

"Elllllllllll." Cana slurred out. "Come on! Let's get a drink! At my place!"

"No thanks, I don't even like alcohol that much." I replied absentmindedly as I tried to take a few more steps forward with the extra human baggage clinging onto my leg.

"Come on! Drink!" Cana said as she pushed her wine barrel in my face. I scrunched up my nose at the smell of liquor. Just how high is the alcohol content?! It's a wonder she still have a working kidney after drinking barrels of this everyday!

I gently pushed the wine barrel away from my face. I need a distraction if I want to get away from Cana.

"Oh. Hey Gildarts!"

* * *

Cana's heart skipped a beat at hearing her father's name. What?! Her father is back from his job?! No way is she letting him see her like this!

Cana quickly stood up and spun around as she tried to look for the huge man. Huh, where is he?

"Hey, El. Where is..." Cana stopped the moment she noticed that the lazy S Class mage had given her the slip. That jerk!

Cana's eye twitched in annoyance at how Elden escaped from her. Elden couldn't possibly know the relationship between her and Gildarts, right? It must be a coincidence that he said Gildart's name out of the many mages in their guild. That must be it.

Still, she needs to inform the rest of the guild that her plan to get Elden dead drunk until the preparations are complete is a utter failure as well.

 _"Warren. I didn't manage to get El drunk and he gave me the slip. He's probably making his way to the guild as we speak."_

 _"What?! That was your plan all along?! The plan was to delay him! Not make him dead drunk!"_

 _"He can't go to the guild if he's dead drunk."_ Cana retorted. _"I brought my best liquor for it too. He didn't even take a sip."_

 _"Argh! Just come back for now! I will see if there is anybody else who is free to go and intercept him!"_

 _"Roger that."_ Cana replied mentally as she picked up her wine barrel and began her walk back to the guild. She took a large gulp of liquor from the wine barrel. Elden the jerk, can't even appreciate a good drink even when it's placed in front of him.

Never mind, it just means that there is more of it all to herself.

* * *

I cloaked myself in a sphere of barriers that refract light around me and made me invisible. I have no wish to be delayed any longer and it's lunch time. I'm getting hungry again and I want to find something to eat in the guild hall. The guild hall always have the nicest and cheapest food available.

I spotted the guild hall from where I was in the air and decided to enter from the back door. Something is obviously up in the guild today, and whatever it is, no one wanted me to know and they have done all sorts of things to prevent me from going back to the guild hall. Might as well see what they are planning, their antics had successfully raised my curiosity.

Taking great care in trying not to produce any sound, I entered the back of the guild building while still invisible and I made my way to the guild hall.

The hall was a... chaotic mess, to say the least.

"Hurry! Put that banner over there! The cake over here and the rest of the food over there!" I witness in silence as Macao directed some of the guild members as he waved his hands towards where he is pointing.

"Got it! Who did we send to delay El this time?" Wakaba spoke up as he carried a huge amount of drinks with him and placed it on a nearby table. I'm willing to bet that he probably changed all the drinks there to alcoholic ones.

"Jet and Droy! If they fail it will be Bisca's and Alzack's turn! Hurry! We don't have much time left! El is too smart and strong for us to delay him for long!" Warren called up as he scurried around to help in decorating the guild hall. What is the occasion today? It's common for Fairy Tail to throw big parties like this without any reason. But why wasn't I informed? Why did they not want my help?

"Someone pass me some ribbons!" I heard Yukino's voice and looked up to where she is trying to decorate a banner hung across the ceiling of the guild hall near the main entrance. She's currently sitting on a wooden beam high up from the ground. I can't see what the banner wrote from where I was since the words faced the front of the guild's main entrance and I entered from the back door. She's wearing the dark blue rose hairpin on her head that I bought for her back at Era a few days ago. I had saw it in a bazaar as we were making our way back to Magnolia after the incident with Jellal. It looked a lot like the one that I remembered Yukino wore in canon and she looked nice in it, so I bought it and gave it to her as a present.

I looked around. The rest of the guild were busy with decorations or arranging the place. Gray and Natsu were running around covered in... was that cream? Erza had took on the role of a coordinator and helped to direct people around together with Jellal. Gajeel and Levy seemed to be decorating something at a corner of the guild but Gajeel tears off more of the decorations than decorating the guild itself. Lucy is helping as well. Cana had just strode through the main entrance of the guild with Jet and Droy.

"Guys! There's trouble! We can't find El anywhere!" Droy exclaimed as he waved his hands around.

"I ran through the whole of Magnolia two times and I can't find him!" Jet added.

"He must have gone invisible." Master, who was at the bar table supervising the proceedings, contributed. "Let's hurry then. It won't be long before El gets back here. He must have noticed that something is up."

Yeah, damn right I did. But what the hell is happening?!

Yukino called for the ribbons once more, but everyone else is either busy or didn't hear her. Seeing that I might as well help out in whatever occasion the guild deemed appropriate to celebrate, I sneakily picked up some ribbons and floated upwards, still invisible, and sat on the wooden beam beside her.

I silently passed the ribbons to Yukino with one hand, which she took without even looking back at me. Wow, I have never seen her with such concentration before.

I dropped my barriers as I asked. "So, what's the occasion?"

"How can you not know when you are busy helping in the preparation since early morning?!" Yukino grumbled under her breath as she tried to tie the ribbons onto the banner, and I still didn't manage to catch a glimpse of the words being written on it as Yukino's body was obstructing my line of sight. She didn't even turn back once to see who was talking to her. The entire guild was busy since early morning? What is going on?!

"It's El-niichan's birthday today, idiot! What else do you think the entire guild was preparing for? It's his 21st birthday! It's important! But he never remembers his own birthday! We always have to remind him even though he remembers our birthday without any problems. Can't you see from the humongous birthday cake in the middle of the guild hall?" Yukino pointed downwards with her back still facing me. I followed her outstretched finger and saw a huge birthday cake in the middle of the guild hall like she said. It had my name written on it. How did I miss it?

Huh, so it's my birthday today?

I never remembered my birthdays, be it in my previous life or this current one. When I filled out my application form to be a mage of Fairy Tail with my personal particulars, I just randomly chose a date to fill in the blanks and forgot all about it after that. It was Mira who first found out about it when she asked when was my birthday after I gave her a present on her first birthday with Fairy Tail. I told her that I cannot remember and I wrote a random date on my application form somewhere. She then dug it out in the guild's archives with Master's permission, and proceeded to give me a birthday present for every single birthday thereafter using that date as my birthday. I never managed to remember what date it was that I have chosen, Mira did that for me every year. That day will be the one day every year where I will be pleasantly surprised with a present popping up from somewhere. It seems like today is the day.

"Well, if you have nothing better to do, you can help in..." Yukino let the words hang in the air when she finally turned around to see who was talking to her all this while.

"AHHH! EL-NIICHAN! DON'T SCARE ME LIKE THAT!" Yukino screamed as she nearly fell down from the wooden beam where she is sitting on. How did she even climb up here in the first place?

"Inside voice, Yukino." I commented as I removed my hands that was covering my ears from the ear-splitting scream that Yukino gave.

"Y-You aren't supposed to be here yet!" Yukino's mind seemed to stop working temporarily as she flailed her hands like a bird flapping its wings.

"I got tired of getting delayed, so I sneaked my way in." I answered as I gave a very amused grin. "I was wondering why everyone seemed intent on not letting me get to the guild today, now I know why."

Yukino's scream had attracted the stares of everyone in the guild by now, who had gathered around and saw me conversing with Yukino.

"ARGH! We failed! Elden's already here!"

"Damn it, Jet, Droy! Why can't you guys find him sooner!"

"Hey! It's not our fault! You guys didn't do a good job of delaying him either!"

The noise volume in the guild hall rose and it seems like a guild brawl is about to happen very soon. I wonder if this is the reason why they took so long to complete the decorations and preparations?

"SILENCE!"

Erza's authoritative voice boomed out and silenced the rowdy group. Mira walked out from within the crowd and gestured for me and Yukino to come down. I saw Elfman and Lisanna with her as well. No wonder the entire Monster Legion said they weren't free today, they were preparing for my secret birthday party.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't touched by the actions of the entire guild.

"You came too early." Mira said with a hint of amusement in her eyes as she grabbed my hand and dragged me outside the guild. "I wasn't expecting the rest of the guild to succeed in holding you back but I certainly didn't expect for you to arrive so early."

"Punctuality is a nice virtue to have." I remarked as I walked beside Mira. "Did you plan all of that?" I gestured behind towards the guild hall.

"Yukino was the one who wanted to throw a huge party for you." Mira confessed. "I know you are not keen about huge gatherings, but it _is_ your 21st birthday. It's something to celebrate. We thought it will be easier to plan your birthday party since you never remembered when your birthday was, but I guess I underestimated how good you are at sneaking around undetected."

"Thank you, Mira. For everything." I said softly and squeezed her hand gently.

Mira gave a light laugh and gave me a peck on the lips.

"Happy birthday, El."

* * *

Mira and I took a stroll around town for the next hour as the rest of the guild finished their preparations. The entire guild building shook when the guild roared out a "HAPPY 21ST BIRTHDAY, EL!" the moment I reentered the guild with Mira, and I couldn't keep the smile off my face.

It feels good to be a part of this loving family.


	10. Chapter 10- Once and For All

"You can go to any other guild to take missions! Have you no shame!"

"You guys really hold a grudge. Can't just let bygones be bygones, huh?"

Hmm, is that Jet and Gajeel that I hear? What's going on?

"El-niisan?"

"Just checking something out. You head to the guild first, I will be back shortly. Help me get a good spot to read while you are at it."

Yukino rolled her eyes and she continued to walk to the direction of the guild as I waved her off. I'm pretty sure canon Yukino wouldn't do something like rolling her eyes. I guessed I must have spoilt her.

It doesn't matter to me, as long as my little sister can live a carefree life, I regret nothing.

I cloaked myself with invisibility once more and headed towards the source of the disturbance. I know Jet and Droy still held a grudge against Gajeel for what he did in the war with Phantom, but I had hoped that they do not go and do anything stupid. They may not realise it, but it takes a lot of courage for Gajeel to join Fairy Tail, a guild that used to be the enemy of his former guild, a guild that he once warred against for the wrong reasons.

Gajeel deserves a chance to redeem himself just as Jellal did.

When I reached the source of the commotion, Gajeel was already lying on the floor with bruises all over his body and Jet and Droy stood over him. Levy had hidden herself partially behind a tree, looking torn between supporting her teammates or helping Gajeel.

"Hey, what are you up to?" Jet taunted.

"That can't be it for your power." Droy added with a tinge of anger in his voice.

"Being picked on, huh?"

Ah crap, Laxus.

I revealed myself immediately. Knowing his personality, Laxus is definitely going to stir some shit up.

"Can someone tell me what the hell is going on?" I announced my presence and called out with feigned ignorance. I did a lazy stretch of my arms on purpose and gave an exaggerated yawn, trying to diffuse the tense situation with my casual behaviour. I helped Gajeel up, who seemed surprised at the gesture. The only time we had interacted in earnest before this was during the short period of time when he challenged me to a battle to keep me away from the preparation of my surprise birthday party, we did not have the opportunity to get to know each other well yet.

"El." Laxus spoke, his voice dripping with venom.

"Laxus." I greeted in reply. "Glad to see that you are back. How long are you staying this time?"

"Why would you care, _traitor_?" Laxus sneered. "Can't wait to get rid of me?" Laxus turned his gaze on to Gajeel. "So this is the punk that turned my guild into a mess? The old fart let you join for some shitty reason? It's because of this that we're looked down upon DAMN IT!"

A large bolt of lightning fell down from the sky and I barely had time to raise a barrier to prevent the lightning from striking down onto Gajeel. I gritted my teeth, Laxus had not only become a lot stronger, but faster as well.

"STOP GETTING IN MY WAY, EL!"

"Stop hurting Gajeel, he is one of us now. That goes for you two as well, Jet, Droy. I'm not blind. I will settle things with the both of you later." I aimed my words at the two males of Team Shadowgear. I did not like how they handled things. What they did is a blatant disrespect to Master's orders when he explicitly said to not make things hard for Gajeel. I don't expect them to forgive him immediately or for everything to be all sunshine and rainbows, but I certainly didn't expect them to physically hurt Gajeel in their rage. They can at least be a little more professional in their behaviour.

Their behaviour needs to be corrected.

"Stop it, Aegis." Gajeel said from behind me as he put a hand on my shoulder and stepped forward. "Appreciate your gesture, but this is my business. If these punks have issues with me, then I will settle it with them."

I clicked my tongue in annoyance, Natsu was right when he called Gajeel bolt-for-brains. Jet and Droy is one thing, but Laxus is a totally different story. Gajeel will get himself fried into a lizard kebab if he takes on Laxus's attacks as he is now.

Gajeel walked up to Laxus and met Laxus's enraged stare with his own determined gaze, and it was at that moment, I felt a sense of respect for Gajeel rising from within me. Maybe it is fitting for him to be an Iron Dragon Slayer, Gajeel does have an ironclad will. Not everyone can walk up to an impossible situation and stare at it in their face without fear.

"It's all your fault!" Laxus screamed out in rage as he sent a huge blast of lightning at Gajeel, which propelled him backwards. Laxus didn't relent on his assault, and continued to blast Gajeel with lightning.

"Stop it, Laxus! You are going too far!" Jet cried out. Even he cannot take the cruelty being inflicted onto Gajeel any longer. This is borderline torture.

"It doesn't matter how strong Laxus is, Gajeel should be able to fight back! Unless, from the very start..." Droy started to contemplate.

"He wanted us to recognise him as a nakama, so he didn't fight back?" Levy, who was hiding behind a tree all along, whispered out.

I readied my shields, and I made sure to make them transparent. I will step in if Laxus takes things too far. I will not allow him to injure a nakama fatally right in front of my eyes.

"It's all your fault we are being made fun of!" Laxus said as he punched Gajeel in the jaw. "Why don't you just die!" Laxus kneed Gajeel in his gut while sparking with lightning. "I'll kill anyone who goes against Fairy Tail!"

I was about to step in at this point. Even if Gajeel wished to take this all by himself, the current situation had escalated to far beyond what he could handle with his body. That idiot didn't even bother to defend Laxus's attacks with magic. He will get himself killed at this rate!

Funnily enough, Gajeel wasn't the one I needed to defend.

"Stop! That's enough! Laxus!" Jet cried out.

"SHUT UP! LITTLE RIFF-RAFF SHOULD BE QUIET!"

Laxus sent a bolt of lightning in Team Shadowgear's direction and it was headed straight for Levy. I tried to quickly raised a barrier in front of her, but I'm not sure if I will make it in time with the speed the lightning bolt was heading for her. Laxus's attacks have gotten a lot more faster over the period of time that I didn't see him. Furthermore, the majority of the barriers that I have discreetly prepared were at Gajeel's direction and Levy is too far away from me.

"LEVY!" Jet and Droy both cried out as they tried to defend their teammate, their eyes widened both in shock and fright. Levy isn't a combat-oriented mage even though she can hold her own in combat. Taking a direct attack from Laxus can possibly injure her fatally. The attack that Laxus fired is potent, and even I will be feeling the effects for a few days if I just took it on like that undefended.

A black blur put himself in harm's way and blocked the lightning bolt heading for Levy. Gajeel stood firm as he stared at Laxus with determination even when he is sporting wounds all over his body.

"Is that enough?" Gajeel asked as he panted slightly, trying to ease his ragged breathing. "I've got work to do."

"Laxus." I called out slowly as I gradually released my powers. The invisible barriers that I have secretly prepared revealed themselves as they floated all around Laxus in all sorts of shapes. "You pull this kind of shit _one more time_ , I will _end_ you. We are nakamas. Nakamas _don't_ hurt each other like that. You have gone too far."

Laxus said nothing as he turned around and walked away from the area. Seeing that the incident is over, Gajeel walked away as well to complete his job, even if he had trouble walking in a straight line. We tried to convince him to go seek medical help, but he waved away any concerns about his injuries.

Stupid idiot. Einstein was right to say that stupidity is infinite. At least go get your injuries checked out for crying out loud!

"Right, so since we are done here now..." I said out loud and dusted my hands as we watched Gajeel disappeared round the corner. Team Shadowgear turned to look at me, and I slowly rotate my head to look and Jet and Droy, who suddenly seemed very uncomfortable at how I am staring at them.

"It's time we talked about your behaviour."

* * *

"You made them _what_?!" Elfman said as he nearly spit out the drink in my face. Luckily, I managed to raise a barrier to block it in time.

"Made the two of them clean up the guild's male toilets for a week. It's a pretty light punishment." I said calmly while taking another sip from my mug.

"No wonder the two of them looked so tired the entire week. Cleaning the toilets, even if it is only for the males, has to be tiring. Our new guild building is pretty huge." Elfman said as he ate a huge serving of apple pie. "Master approved of the punishment?"

"He did." I replied as I finished the last of my drink and opened up another book to read. "What they did is a blatant disregard to Master's orders. If everyone can simply get away with disobeying the orders of a guild master like that, who will listen to Master? How will he command and lead the guild? Furthermore, they injured a nakama on purpose. As a leader, there are times you need to punish your subordinates in accordance to the law of the organisation or group that you are leading when they are in the wrong, even if you do not wish to. How else will you maintain your authority and leadership? How else will the group function if everyone can get away without getting punished even when they had made mistakes?"

"It's starting!" Yukino yelled as she ran up to me and Elfman. "Hurry, hurry! The Ms Fairy Tail contest is starting! Mira-nee and Lisanna-nee are competing and I don't want to miss it!"

"Coming, coming." I replied as I snapped my book shut and walked up to Yukino together with Elfman. Yukino held our hands and she tried to drag us along to hurry us up. "Relax, Yukino. We still have a lot of time."

All I got in reply from Yukino was a kick to my shin.

"Have you learnt that spell I found for you?" I asked as I ignored the kick from Yukino, it barely tickled. Yukino didn't put much strength in that kick.

"Yes, I did. The only problem is that my magical reserves is not yet large enough to use it at its full capacity. Where did you find the spell from anyway?"

"The guild archives." I replied dryly. "I honestly don't know why nobody visits the guild archives more often. The guild did collect a huge library of spells and magics ever since its founding and most of it is just sitting there and collecting dust. The First Master must be rolling in her grave if she knew about it." Even I cannot believe my own eyes when I found that spell. I knew that I absolutely have to let Yukino learn it when I first found it when I was browsing through the guild archives. How did the Fairy Tail main cast from canon missed it? The book that documented the process of invoking that spell is just sitting right there on the shelf!

Yukino looked at me in disbelief.

"I really found it in the guild archives, _imouto_." I emphasised the last word just to make her face flush. Her face never failed to go beet red whenever I address her as my younger sister instead of her name. The way she sputtered with her flustered looks makes a cute combination. "Why don't you believe in your _onii-chan_?"

"St-Stop calling me that! It's embarrassing!"

I put a hand over the area where my heart is and my face scrunched up in mock hurt. "Ah! My imouto just rejected-"

A loud crash can be heard as Yukino punched me in my gut and stomped off, leaving me lying on a pile of destroyed wooden tables while staring at the ceiling.

Huh, that punch actually hurt. Since when had she trained herself to this degree?

* * *

I really should try and do something about my failing memory. How did I managed to forget that the Ms Fairy Tail contest is the trigger to the start of the Battle of Fairy Tail arc?

"The time limit is three hours. If you cannot defeat us, they will turn to sand." Evergreen said as she gestured towards the petrified female members of the guild who had participated in the Ms Fairy Tail contest. Unfortunately, Mira and Lisanna are caught up in it as well. "The battlefield is the entire Magnolia town. The battle starts when you find us."

"DONT MESS AROUND!" Master roared out in fury as he activated his Titan magic, increasing his body size.

"Calm down, old man. Let's enjoy the main show."

With a bright flash of light, the entire Thunder God Tribe disappeared, leaving a stunned Fairy Tail gaping at the contest stage in shock. Chaos immediately erupted as the rest of the guild immediately rushed out of the guild building to beat Laxus into a pulp and save the petrified girls, I didn't even have time to raise my barriers to stop them from making their way to Magnolia. What they are doing right now is exactly what Laxus wanted! Can't any of them see?!

To make things worse, Freed have cast a restriction spell with his Jutsu Shiki, preventing any statues or anyone above 80 to make their way out, effectively trapping Master and the Dragon Slayers within the guild building. Everyone was confused as to why the Dragon Slayers were trapped, but I knew better. Our Dragon Slayers are people who traveled 400 years from the past to the present. Technically speaking, they are over 80 years old.

However, this time, another additional rule that I was sure that did not appear in canon was added. Jellal and I were not allowed to leave as well. Laxus had probably deemed us as too big a threat to his plans since I am supposedly his equal and Jellal used to be a member of the Ten Wizard Saints. We are too strong for his taste.

Damn it.

Laxus will destroy a huge part of Magnolia at this rate! I know what happened in canon, it was pure luck that the Thunder Palace was even stopped! The battle between our mages will rip the entire town apart! We are not known for controlling our powers in a fight!

I could only watch anxiously as reports of the Battle of Fairy Tail popped up one by one, courtesy of Freed's magic. Master was probably even more anxious than me. He could only stand and watch as his children were forced to battle one another against their will, his heart would have felt as if it was tossed into a grinder.

"Breathe, Master. We need to put our trust in them. We will find a way to stop this somehow. Have faith, and take care of your health." I said as I patted him on the back in encouragement. Master's face is a little pale, his body is not as fit as it should be when he was younger. His old age is finally catching up to him.

"Indeed." Jellal joined in. "Someone will be able to take Laxus down for sure. We just have to wait until the barrier is dispelled."

"I WANNA JOIN IN! WHAT'S WITH THIS STUPID INVISIBLE WALL?!" Natsu complained as he pressed himself against the restriction barrier and hoped that it will be enough to let him through it.

Master chopped him on the head with his hand and began ranting about the seriousness of this issue. I tuned out their conversation and just lie down on one of the empty tables and closed my eyes. There's nothing we can do about the barrier for now. I will need my full strength when I go out later, might as well save my strength.

"El-niichan! This isn't the time to be sleeping!" Yukino cried out in worry. Thank god she didn't ran out stupidly like the rest of the guild. At least she realised that at her current level of power, there's no way she can stand up to the likes of the Thunder God Tribe.

"I know that someone will get the Jutsu Shiki down, and when that happens, I want to be at full strength. You stay here, Yukino. You are not yet ready to take part in a battle like that." I replied simply as I dozed off and let my thoughts wander off despite Yukino yelling into my ears.

My thoughts wandered elsewhere. I remembered the blond haired boy who befriended me on my first day at Fairy Tail. I remembered the boy who trained and practiced magic with me. I remembered the boy who I used to went on missions with. I remembered how he said to me that he will one day succeed Master Makarov and takeover the guild to continue his legacy. I remembered how we made a promise that I will be his Ace if he ever becomes the guild master. I remembered how we achieved our first unison raid. I remembered how we first formed the Thunder God Tribe and how we saved Freed, Bickslow, and Evergreen and bring them into Fairy Tail. I remembered how happy we were.

I also remembered how I lost my friend.

Laxus, it's time to settle things between us once and for all.

It's time to bring my best friend back.

* * *

"El. It's time to wake up."

I opened my eyes as I tried to see who is trying to shake me awake. Mira's face came into view as she smiled at me from above. I checked the time with my watch, I didn't fall asleep for very long. It seemed like someone had undone Evergreen's spell while I was asleep.

"The battle is still going on." Mira explained. "However, Laxus had activated the Thunder Palace. We have only slightly more than an hour left until it obliterate the whole of Magnolia. Master is not feeling well too, his heart is giving him problems. All the stress and anger is bad for him." She said this with a grim face. "Levy had just rewrite the runes so that everyone can now pass through it freely. However, the Thunder Palace is inscribed with Organic Link magic. Trying to destroy the Thunder Palace will reflect the damage back to the attacker. It already got Bisca."

So it finally happened, huh.

"I will get rid of it." I assured her as I made my way out of the guild building with Mira beside me.

"El! Don't!" Levy said as she run up to me. "That's suicide!"

"Don't worry about it." I waved off Levy's concerns with a small smile on my face. I turned to Mira. "Can you take Freed down? His runes are too dangerous, and fighting him will be wasting precious time. Time that we can use to destroy the Thunder Palace."

Mira playfully flicked my forehead with a finger. "Watch your tone, Aegis. I am the Demon of Fairy Tail. Don't underestimate me." With a bright shine of light, Mira transformed with her Satan Soul. "Stay safe, El."

"You too, Mira."

I watched as Mira flew off to search for Freed. Jellal and our two Dragon Slayers had ran off to town some time back even before I woke up. For now, I can leave the fighting to them, I need to get rid of the Thunder Palace. I let my magic out as I floated high into the air in the middle of the town as the air currents swirled around me in response to my power.

"Senbonzakura."

* * *

"You are Bickslow?"

"Heh, I never thought I will be facing someone who was a previous member of the Ten Wizard Saints. How did being controlled for eight years felt like? Care to share?"

Jellal ignored the Seith mage as his dolls cried out "Care to share? Care to share?", imitating the last phrase said by their master. Jellal is determined to not let his past dictate his future. He was offered the opportunity to walk in the light once again, he will not squander it away.

Jellal took off his coat and threw it aside, revealing the fighting suit that he wore underneath and returned Lucy's keys to her which he had picked up along the way. He was glad that he was able to make it in time to save Lucy from Bickslow. The Seith mage might have ripped Lucy's soul out from her body if it wasn't for his intervention.

"Lucy, stay back. This battle is now between him and me."

"Jellal! I can help!"

"You can help to evacuate the nearby townsfolk. Our battle can get a little...destructive."

Lucy looked between Jellal and Bickslow uneasily before she ran off to help evacuate the nearby townsfolk, making sure that no innocent bystanders will come near to the site of the battle.

"Heh, look at you. Acting all high and mighty now. What a hypocrite."

"You are right."

Bickslow was nearly slammed into the ground as Jellal appeared behind him in a blink of an eye and sent a fist at his back just as he said those three words. What insane speed!

"Baryon Formation!"

At Bickslow's command, his dolls positioned themselves in a pentagonal pattern and began to spin in an anti-clockwise motion rapidly before firing a huge beam of energy that tore at the ground where Jellal once stood. Bickslow didn't let up his attacks as he commanded his dolls to fire magic repeatedly at Jellal, but Jellal is too fast to be hit.

"I am a hypocrite, but at least I now know that I was being controlled. I am a sinner, I won't deny it, but it wasn't on my own volition. What are your reasons?"

Bickslow sent his dolls to tackle Jellal, but Jellal batted it away with a single backhand swipe. Bickslow continued his long range assault, tearing up several shop houses along the way and destroying the gravel pavements. But no matter what he did, Jellal remains untouched and unfazed.

Things are looking very bad for Bickslow.

"Laxus is all the reason I need! He will be the one who bring Fairy Tail to greater heights! He will make Fairy Tail the strongest guild in existence! I will bring you down, Jellal! Fairy Tail doesn't need criminals in the guild!"

Bickslow threw off his visor and revealed his Figure Eyes. He cannot afford to hold back when facing someone on the level of a Wizard Saint.

"Behold my power! Line Formation!"

Bickslow's dolls stood atop one another in midair and released a crescent shaped wave of energy towards Jellal, who was forced to close his eyes to prevent himself from getting controlled by Bickslow's Figure Eyes. To Bickslow's horror, Jellal stopped the advance of the attack with a single hand and crushed it by simply clenching his fist around the condensed energy.

"H-How?"

"You can't call yourself the strongest with an attack of this calibre. If this is all you have then I am sorely disappointed." Jellal spoke up with his eyes still closed. "Meteor."

Jellal dashed forward in a bright yellow light as Bickslow commanded his dolls to protect him in an X Formation. However, Jellal swerved to the side unexpectedly at the last minute despite the speed at which he was going and got around to Bickslow's back.

"Fall. Nine Thundering Stars."

Extending his arms, nine swords made out of lightning came into existence as Jellal shot them towards Bickslow, who screamed out in pain at the attack.

"You should treasure what you have." Jellal spoke as he walked up to the unconscious form of Bickslow. He picked his coat up from where he threw onto the floor prior to the battle and slung Bickslow over his shoulder, and started to fly off back in the direction of the guild.

"Don't commit the same mistakes as me. Not everything can be forgiven."

Jellal dropped Bickslow in the guild where some of the members who were released from their petrified state are still around. They will be able to help heal Bickslow's wounds.

"Don't end up like me."

* * *

"So we finally meet, El."

"Laxus." I greeted as I walked into the Kardia Cathedral where Laxus is. "Stop this farce. I have destroyed the Thunder Palace. There's no need for this to continue."

Laxus ignored me as he continued speaking. "I knew you will be the first one to find me, El, even if I had Freed trap you inside those runes of his. I know that you will be the first who managed to locate me. You always did."

I remained silent as I let Laxus continue his speech. It will be the last time I will hear anything from him in a long while. There's no doubt Master will excommunicate him from the guild once this is over. Laxus had gone too far.

I will lose Laxus no matter what the outcome of this impending battle is.

"There were always rumours flying here and there on who is the strongest in Fairy Tail. It was always between me, you, and Mystogan." Laxus drawled out.

"You are forgetting Gildarts." I replied. "Have you forgotten how he handed our asses to us in our S Class trials? There's always Erza and Mira too. They are strong as well."

"Eh, Gildart's not coming back, he doesn't count. Erza and your little chick shows a lot of promise, but they are ultimately still weak. Don't you see it, El?" Laxus said as he spread out his arms. "Two out of three of the contenders for the title of the "Strongest" are right here! If we work together, there is nothing that can stop us! You know it! We were unstoppable when we were a duo years ago!" Laxus held out a hand to me. "Come, El! Join me! If we work together, there's no way Fairy Tail wouldn't be the strongest guild in the whole of Fiore! No, the whole of Earthland! We will be the strongest in the world! I will be the guild master, and you will be my Ace of the guild! Just like how we promised each other back then! How about it? I can forget about you leaving the Thunder God Tribe! We can start all over again! Just like old times!"

My eyes softened as I imprinted this sight into my mind. If only I had managed to save Laxus from these thoughts back then, this would not be happening now.

I am really a failure as a friend.

"I will make you another offer, Laxus." I said as I took the hands out of my pockets. "Stop this now. Please." I pleaded. "It's not too late to turn back now. Please, just come back."

Laxus's expression fell as he let his arms hang limply by his side.

"So even after I offered to let bygones be bygones, you still stand against me, eh?" Lightning started to spark around Laxus and the air started to buzz with static. All talks are off the table now. "There's no point in talking then. I had hoped that after what the both of us had been through together, you will be the one who can understand me, why I did all these. It's for Fairy Tail!"

"I know you mean well." I said as the petals of Senbonzakura swirled into existence. "But what you wanted for the guild is not what the guild needs." More of the petals came into life as my magic pulsed outwards in dangerous amounts. "I have failed as a friend to bring you back from your path of self-destruction. This ends now. I am bringing you back today, even if I have to beat it into you until both of us cannot move anymore."

A savage grin appeared on Laxus's face. "Let's settle this once and for all, El, with the title of "Strongest" at stake!"

"You are right. It's time to settle this once and for all." I said resolutely, this fight will be one of the hardest fights I have ever encountered.

Silence fell upon the cathedral as lightning and petals stood opposite one another, crackling and swirling with immense power. With an unspoken signal, both of us charged at one another.

It's time to settle things once and for all.


	11. Chapter 11- Laxus and Elden

Mirajane panted as she reverted back to her human form. Taking down Freed wasn't easy, Freed is almost an S Class mage in strength now and his Rune Magic is very versatile. Furthermore, he had no qualms using fatal spells such as Dark Ecriture: Slay, Death, and Destruction. She wasn't expecting him to be able to turn himself into a demonic being to match her Satan Soul, but it was nothing she couldn't handle.

However, she is now out of juice. Trying to defeat Freed without accidentally killing him or annihilating a part of Magnolia made her take unnecessary hits and took a much longer time than expected. She had needlessly wasted a lot of magic in their battle.

Mirajane looked up at the sky, the Thunder Palace was destroyed by El just as Mirajane found Freed. El had used Senbonzakura to destroy the hundreds of lacrima orbs floating around Magnolia. He had used one petal for each lacrima and proceeded to shield himself with Fairy's Aegis on all sides the moment the lacrimas were destroyed to prevent the Organic Link magic from harming him in response. It worked and El had flew into Kardia Cathedral the moment his work was done.

It's most likely where Laxus is as well. El has a knack for locating people who he is close with without even trying. It has always been that way.

"Mira-nee!"

Mirajane turned around to find Lisanna and Yukino running up to her. Thank goodness, they are unharmed.

"Is that Freed?" Yukino asked as she took a look at the battered green haired man who is lying unconscious on the ground.

"It is." Lisanna confirmed. "Erza took down Evergreen and Jellal had took down Bickslow. With Mira-nee taking Freed out, only Laxus is left now."

"If only we know where he is, we can send everyone else who is still able to fight to confront Laxus." Yukino added. "But no one know where he is!"

"I believe that El had located him and they should be fighting as we speak." Mirajane said as she dusted herself and stood up straight. "They are at the Kardia Cathedral."

"Alright! In that case, we can just-"

"Let El handle Laxus on his own first, Yukino." Mirajane said as she picked up the unconscious Freed. "They have too many things to settle between the two of them. This fight is what they needed. It's not like there is a countdown timer ticking now that the Thunder Palace is destroyed. Let them duke it out."

"I still think that it is better if we send someone capable there." Lisanna said as she took Freed from Mirajane, not wanting her older sister to exert herself even more after her battle. "Laxus is not in the right state of mind. Who knows what he is capable of doing now?"

Mirajane bit her lower lip. Lisanna had a point. El and Laxus may be evenly matched, but Laxus is a little off his rocker as of now. Who knows what he will resort to when push comes to shove?

"Then we need to inform those who are still able to fight to make their way to Kardia Cathedral. I don't think El needs help but-"

A loud crash reverberated across Magnolia. The sisters looked towards the source of the noise and saw a gaping hole in one of the walls of Kardia Cathedral.

"I don't think there's a need to inform the rest anymore, Mira-nee. Everyone will flock to the noise."

Mirajane sighed as she hurried and made her way back to the guild with her sisters. There's no way she can help out now since she is out of magic. Each use of Satan Soul consumes a large amount of magic power and it is not something that she can use successively in a single day without repercussions. Utilising the power of demons is not as easy as it looks.

Mirajane clenched her fists. She had been too slack in her training. If only she had trained herself further, maybe she could have ended her battle with Freed earlier and still be able to go on to help El fight Laxus. As of now, she is too weak to do anything.

Mirajane took a last look at Kardia Cathedral and silently prayed.

 _Stay safe, El._

* * *

"Is this all you got? I'm disappointed, EL!"

Laxus sent huge bolts of lightning at me as he zipped around in his lightning form. All I could do is to raise my barriers around me in a dome. Laxus is too fast for my attacks to catch him, I can only battle defensively as of now.

"Just use your Dragon Slayer magic already, Laxus. We both know attacks of this magnitude won't be able to penetrate my barriers. Let's not waste anymore time."

The deranged grin on Laxus's face got even impossibly wider as he stopped his attacks and stood opposite me.

"HAHAHA! YOU ARE RIGHT!" Laxus continued to laugh as a large surge of powers erupted from within his body and a huge column of electricity burst out. The lightning eventually died down, and Laxus stood opposite me with his coat and shirt discarded, or ripped to shreds from the amount of magic he just gave off. I don't know which. Laxus's canine teeth sharpened as he gave me a predatory look.

"Watch out, El, I'm not holding back now."

Laxus dashed to me in a straight line in his lightning form as soon as he finished speaking. His cocked his right fist back.

"Lightning Dragon's Breakdown Fist!"

Laxus punched his fist forward as he released the large amount of lightning gathered around it. A huge fist of lightning was generated from the lightning he sent and me and impacted against my barrier. Even with my barrier protecting me, he actually pushed me back by a few meters.

I had a hole in my barrier as well when the attack died down. I repaired the hole in my barrier quickly, I cannot afford to be tardy when facing Laxus as my opponent.

"I am the STRONGEST!" Laxus cried out as he jumped above me and unleashed a Lightning Dragon's Roar at my dome of barriers, pushing me deeper into the ground. This is not looking good.

"I am not denying your strength, but how you use it isn't right." I replied as Laxus punched another side of my barrier, knocking me around like how a cat plays with a ball of yarn. I held my hand outwards in Laxus's direction.

"Shinra Tensei."

The effect was instantaneous. Laxus was immediately pushed back by the rapid outward expansion of my invisible barriers and was sent crashing through the wall of Kardia Cathedral. Laxus got up without a scratch on him. That creepy smile of his is still on his face.

"I forgot how annoying that technique of yours is." Laxus commented as he charged up his body with lightning once more. "I won't make the same mistake twice."

The stage II version of Susanoo manifested around me. No point wearing the kiddie gloves anymore. We are done sizing each other up.

"Come, Laxus."

With a loud roar, Laxus jumped up and raised his clenched fist into the air. Dangerous amount of electricity gathered in his fist once more as he smirked at me.

"Raging Bolt!"

"Fairy's Aegis!"

The bolt of lightning Laxus called down was blocked by Susanoo, who raised its arms to block the lightning using the shield I created for it. I charged together with Susanoo in Laxus's direction and created a huge katana for Susanoo to wield.

A large swing of the sword destroyed the interior of the cathedral as Laxus zipped around my attacks. I materialised another pair of arms for Susanoo with a crossbow and arrows, and began to fire arrows at Laxus at a rapid speed.

"This is what I'm talking about, El! A fight between the strongest!"

Laxus charged in and slammed his fists onto Susanoo, pummeling it as he dashed around it. My defenses held, but my attacks were too slow to reach him and Susanoo is too big a target. Laxus is having target practice with it.

With another wave of my hand, I willed Senbonzakura to life and let it rained down upon Laxus. Laxus managed to get out of there in time, but there were a few cuts on his body.

"Lightning Dragon's Roar!"

The huge blast of lightning Laxus exhaled destroyed a large portion of Senbonzakura. I willed more of these petals to life just as I mentally commanded Susanoo to swing its mighty arms at Laxus. Laxus dashed backwards, putting a considerable distance between us. I clicked my tongue in annoyance, a bad habit of mine whenever I feel frustrated or under stress. This version of Susanoo is not a viable option to face Laxus, not when he is near impossible to catch.

"Barrier-Make: Susanoo's Armour."

Susanoo shrank in size and reshaped itself as its armour fitted themselves onto my body. I am now donning the armour of stage III Susanoo on my body, which is a new technique that I created recently to fight foes like Laxus. I am not sure how long I can hold the technique. Barriers are not meant to be made in small sizes and molded in complicated forms. Senbonzakura is an exception as it is just a mass of small barriers that are of simple shapes. It is easy to recreate them and I made up for the loss of each barrier by simply creating them in huge amounts, but the same cannot be said for Susanoo's Armour. The amount of details put into creating even a single piece of armour at such small sizes is taxing on my magic reserves in a drawn out fight. I am not yet proficient enough when it comes to molding intricate barriers on a smaller scale.

"Are you sure you should be doing this, El?" Laxus taunted as he gave me a mocking look. "Your barriers are not meant to be molded this way. Are you sure you can stay awake for long?"

I said nothing as I materialised a katana and slashed at Laxus. Laxus dodged it and we both began to engage each other in a close range fight. Laxus coated his entire body with lightning as a form of armour, enabling him to block my blade with his bare hands.

"You think I don't know what the drawbacks of your magic are?!" Laxus screamed as he tried to punch my face only for me to block it with my katana. "Using your magic drains you, El! And by that I mean it will put you forcefully to sleep, whether you like it or not! I'm right, aren't I?!" Laxus continued to pick apart the weakness of my magic as he rained blows on me while I intercept his attacks by slashing at him with my katana. "You hid it well, I will give you that! But if you think you can hide this weakness from me you are dead WRONG!"

A huge blast of magic from Laxus forced me to back off and I created a shield to block his attack.

"That's why you are always sleeping in the guild!" Laxus said as he tried to get around and punch me from behind, which I dodged and I proceeded to swipe my blade at his knees. He jumped up high and sent several bolts of lightning at me just as I temporarily materialised one of Susanoo's arms to block it. "Part of the reason is because you are naturally lazy, but the practical reason is because you have to! You were forced to! You have to sleep and rest after using your magic extensively! The more extensive the usage of your magic, the shorter amount of time you have before you are forced to sleep and the longer the duration of your forced sleep! You slept off the aftereffects of the Phantom war for an entire week! How long will you sleep this time?! How long do you think will it take for me to force you to sleep from the overuse of your magic?! HUH?!"

I shot several arrows at Laxus which he dodged. I never told anyone other than Mira the weakness of my magic. It is a very dangerous weakness and secrecy is the best way to hide it. It's not like I don't trust the rest of the Monster Legion, but the fewer who know about the weakness of my magic, the better. It is also the reason why I prefer to end my battles quickly. Prolonged battles just don't work out in my favour. It is why I usually take the defensive role when I went on jobs with a team and just focus on defending my teammates, letting them handle the offense. It's less taxing on my magic reserves that way. Thankfully, my magic reserves have grown big enough so this weakness isn't really an issue anymore, but it can be a very dangerous problem when facing an opponent on Laxus's level.

"Your barriers are also not supposed to be molded in complicated manners nor are they supposed to be created in small sizes!" Laxus continued as he zipped around in the air in his lightning form. "They disappear quickly whenever you do so! That's what happened to your flower petals! Other people may not realised it, but I do! These petals cannot manifest themselves for even more than a minute! You just hide it well by creating thousands of them and then immediately recreate another to retake the place of the one that disappeared!"

A large bolt of lightning struck my previous location as I was forced to dodge. Laxus sent more of them and it soon became a game of cat-and-mouse. I need to turn the situation back into my favour.

"Barrier-Make: Maze."

Laxus's lightning form crashed into an invisible barrier and he took a few steps back to steady himself.

"I created a maze with walls made of invisible barriers within the cathedral, Laxus. You cannot fly around however you like now. Both of us are now trapped in the maze." I lifted a hand towards him. "And now it's my domain."

Unseen by Laxus, many rectangular pillars extended out of the walls of the invisible room I created with my barriers and smashed into Laxus which earned him a grunt of pain. The ceiling of the maze fell on Laxus as it slammed into him and attempted to squish him flat onto the floor below, but Laxus held it up with pure strength as his entire form began to buzz with lightning once more.

"I will crush you, EL!"

Laxus roared out as he began to discharge more and more lightning out of his body. He pushed again the ceiling with one arm and cocked the other arm backwards.

"Lightning Dragon's Breakdown Fist!"

Laxus punched a hole that was large enough for him to fly through the barrier, freeing him from the constraints of the maze that I created. I flicked my fingers as I sent a mental command to my remaining barriers and pointed my finger at Laxus once more.

"Breakdown."

At my command, my remaining barriers from the room technique deconstructed themselves into many smaller blocks, each about the size of a brick, and launched themselves at Laxus. Laxus tried to fly through it, but there were too many for him to completely avoid it. I redirected the blocks at Laxus once more, who now decided to decimate them using his strength alone.

A concentrated, destructive blast of lightning was released from Laxus's mouth as it sweeped through the cathedral, obliterating anything in its path and cutting open a path for Laxus to escape. I cannot allow that to happen.

"I'm not done yet! Chibaku Tensei!"

More blocks of barriers appeared as they slammed and stuck onto Laxus as its epicenter. He was soon trapped within a sphere of barrier blocks that is constantly pressing on him from all sides. Laxus looked enraged and he blasted his way out of his confinement, panting for air but otherwise relatively uninjured.

He is one tough motherfucker alright.

Laxus raised both his hands in the air at his sides and generated a huge amount of electricity between the opened facing palms. The electricity soon took the shape of a massive spear which Laxus now held in his right hand.

"Watch out, El. Try not to die from this move." Laxus said as he looked at me with an insane snarl. "Lightning Dragon's Heavenward Halberd!"

Shit.

* * *

"HAHAHAHA! I AM THE STRONGEST! THE STRONGEST!"

Laxus laughed madly as his attack struck true. El ought to be feeling the impact of that attack!

A block of barrier the size of a brick shot out of the cloud of dust kicked up from Laxus's previous attack and nailed him in the jaw, cutting his laughter off.

El emerged from the dust, still clad in that barrier armour and punched Laxus in the gut while he was momentarily defenseless, causing him to puke out some spit from his mouth. With a beastly growl, Laxus punched back and the both of them socked each other in the jaw.

* * *

 _"Hey gramps. Who's that?"_

 _"Oh? That's a kid I brought back to the guild a day ago. How about the two of you make friends with each other?"_

 _With an excited nod, Laxus made his way up to the black haired kid eagerly, who is sitting at a quiet corner in the guild with his nose buried in a book. Laxus held out his hand to the boy, catching his attention._

 _"Hey, my name's Laxus. What's yours?"_

* * *

El recovered first, and performed a powerful spinning kick that Laxus blocked with his arms that he positioned in a 'X' shape in front of him. Laxus caught El's outstretched leg and slammed him violently onto the ground, splitting the ground beneath them that caused spiderweb-like cracks to appear. Laxus joined his hands together and imbue it with a large amount of his magic before bringing it down onto El.

"Lightning Dragon's Jaw!"

* * *

 _"Psst! El! Look what I found in the guild's archives!" Laxus whispered out eagerly to El at their usual spot in the guild hall. The rest of the guild had gotten themselves into another guild brawl and no one is currently paying any attention to them._

 _El's eyes widened in shock before quickly hiding the book Laxus was waving about in the air under the table. The two of them quickly sneaked to a hidden corner of the guild as El hissed at him._

 _"Are you crazy?! That book contains our guild's great magics! Why did you bring it out like that?!"_

 _"If I can master it I can finally be recognised as Laxus Dreyar! Not simply as Makarov's grandson anymore! Besides, only two of the three great fairy magic is recorded here. One of them is missing." Laxus looked around once more to check that no one is listening in on them before whispering back. "We can learn one each!"_

 _That comment seemed to piqued El's curiosity._

 _"What are the two fairy magics recorded in there?"_

 _"Fairy Law and Fairy Sphere!"_

* * *

Laxus roared in pain as his hands hit against something so hard that it nearly broke his wrists upon impact. When the smoke cleared, a small glowing sphere with a Fairy Tail mark with stylised wings emblazoned on it surrounded itself protectively around El in a dome.

"Fairy Sphere?! Don't you dare use that spell in front of me, El!"

El's Fairy Sphere vanished as he summoned once more the petals of Senbonzakura and commanded it to slash at Laxus. Laxus dashed into the petals head on as he covered himself in lightning, vaporizing them with his own magic.

* * *

 _"Hey El! I just picked out a job for us! Let's go!"_

 _"Sure thing. Just let me pack up my stuffs before we head off. What is the job about anyway?"_

 _Laxus gave a predatory grin._

 _"We are gonna bust a smuggling ring!"_

* * *

El blasted Laxus back once more with Shinra Tensei but Laxus flew into the air once more as he shot out a Lightning Dragon's Roar that tore up the area. El stood calmly at his position as he manifested the stage II variation of Susanoo. The avatar held a crossbow in one hand and loaded an arrow with the other before taking aim at Laxus.

With speeds almost faster than what Laxus's eyes can comprehend, El shot arrows after arrows at Laxus as he tried his best to avoid them almost entirely on his keenly honed battle instincts as a result from the countless battles he had participated in. El had improved on the accuracy, power, and speed of the arrows since the last time they clashed powers with each other a long time ago. It's taking all he have to be able to dodge each arrow that El fired. Laxus called upon a Raging Bolt once more to strike the ethereal warrior from above and destroyed it in an instant. Laxus's eyes narrowed in caution as he glanced at his surroundings quickly. It must be a trap, El's barriers don't vanish that easily. There is no way that Raging Bolt could have destroyed Susanoo in its entirety, El is planning something.

* * *

 _"I've decided!" Laxus suddenly proclaimed and stopped walking forward, prompting El to stop in his tracks as well. The two of them were on their way to their client's place to learn more about the details of the job that they had accepted. Laxus turned to face the sky with a determined gleam in his eyes and shouted at the top of his lungs._

 _"I'm going to be the next master of Fairy Tail!"_

 _Laxus steadied his nervous breathing and he stole a peek in El's direction. He really hope that El won't laugh at him for having such a childish dream._

 _To his surprise and relief, El merely looked at Laxus with a small smile on his face as he patted Laxus on his back._

 _"It's a great dream to have, Laxus. I really think that you might be strong enough to inherit the position from Master one day."_

 _Laxus could not keep the smile off his face even if he tried. His best friend had acknowledged him and his dream!_

 _"Really?"_

 _"I mean it." El commented as he opened up his water flask to take a quick drink._

 _Laxus's smile got even wider._

 _"It's a promise then!" Laxus pointed a finger at El. "I will be the guild master! And when I do, you are gonna takeover Gildarts and be my Ace!"_

 _"EH?!" El choked as he spit out the water that he had been drinking from his water flask._

 _"What?! Do you expect me to be able to run the guild by myself?! You will help me, won't you?" Laxus put his hands on his hips and scowled at his best friend. El merely snorted and he continued to walk forward._

 _"Of course I will, but being the Ace of the guild is so troublesome. Too many responsibilities. I won't have time to read my books anymore."_

 _Laxus caught up to El as he scrunched up his face in thought. An idea sparked in his mind and Laxus slammed his fist into his opened palm._

 _"Then let's form a team! It will be easier to run the guild if we have a team to help us! We can recruit more members into our team later on! We can aim to be the strongest team in the guild!"_

 _"It will be nice training and experience for you to be the next guild master too. If you proved yourself capable to lead a team, Master will take it into consideration when he choose his successor." El admitted._

 _"So how about it? Will you be my Ace?" Laxus asked eagerly._

 _El smiled back at Laxus as he held out a fist for Laxus to bump fists with him._

 _"Of course I will,_ Master Laxus."

* * *

A fist emerged from the ground underneath Laxus as El leaped out from under him and knocked him backwards. Both of their right fists collided forcefully into each other and produced a massive shock wave that rippled out from the impact and destroyed the vicinity, shattering whatever remaining glass panes that hasn't been destroyed into pieces from their earlier bout.

* * *

 _"They are going to reach the borders soon, Laxus! None of us will be able to do anything the moment those scums crossed the borders!"_

 _"They are too far! None of our attacks can reach!"_

 _The smuggling ring, as it turns out, is a group that trafficked and smuggled captured humans as slaves from Fiore to Bosco illegally. They have to stop them before they shipped the caravans with people trapped in them out of Fiore!_

 _"I recently managed to come up with a way for Susanoo to shoot arrows using Barrier-Make, but the attack don't have the reach we need right now. If only we were close enough, we can snipe them and take them out one by one using my arrows."_

 _"What if we combine our powers? Will your attacks reach them?"_

 _"You mean something like a Unison Raid? But that is not something that can be easily achieved, Laxus!"_

 _"We don't have a choice anymore! The people locked in the caravans are counting on us! If we cannot stop these smugglers, no one else will!"_

 _El visibly clenched his teeth and clicked his tongue._

 _"Let's do it."_

 _Without further ado, the two teens combined their magic as one as they stood side by side. The upper body of a huge spectral warrior emerged in its armour as a huge bow materialised in its left hand and an arrow in its right. The warrior loaded the arrow on the bow and pulled back. Lightning soon crackled and covered the entire warrior as the shape of the warrior changed slightly. The warrior's body sparked with a blinding yellow and is now made up of lightning while the barriers covered the lightning figure as intricately carved armour. An amoured lightning warrior roared into the sky as it took aim at the smugglers._

 _" **Unison Raid: Lightning Dragon Warrior's Heavenward Roaring Arrow!** "_

* * *

Both Laxus and El engaged in close quarter combat once more as they punched, blocked, parried, and kicked at each other. El produced weapons of different types and forms in their bout using his magic. He created nunchucks that bashed at Laxus using brute force and called upon a pair of tonfas to block Laxus's punch. El created chains that emerged from his wrists to wrap themselves onto Laxus's arms and threw him across the cathedral. Laxus howled in pain and fired lightning bolts at El only for him to create a shield on his left arm to block it and charged at him in an attempt to bash him with it. Laxus flew up, but El jumped after him and hacked at him with a broadsword. Laxus kicked El back down and dived down after him only to nearly get himself skewered by a spear that El had conjured and tried to stab him with. Laxus can't help but think back to the days when the both of them had trained together as they continued to fight like this. Unknown to most, El is also a weapons master similar to Erza, but it is not El's preferred style of fighting and Erza's proficiency with weapons had overtook El's shortly after she made S Class. Even so, El can be very vicious with any weapon in his possession, something which he experienced first-hand many times when they trained with each other years ago. El had made full use of the near indestructible property of his barrier magic to mold weapons for him to use in close combat, an idea he had thought of after he saw Erza's magic for the first time.

Knocking El's weapon aside, Laxus charged at El with a crooked arm lariat aimed at El's neck to force him to the ground. El quickly brought his body close to the ground to dodge it and he kicked upwards at Laxus's jaw. El's kick connected as it sent Laxus flying up in the air with his head snapping upwards forcefully from the kick.

"Never thought that I will really have the chance to do this. I'm glad I watched Naruto so many years ago. Really a great source of inspiration." Laxus heard El muttered quietly under his breath as El appeared silently behind his back in midair. _Who is Naruto?_

El wrapped his arms and legs around Laxus, constricting him and not allowing him to move as El pointed Laxus's head downwards into the ground. They started to spin at a ferocious speed and El sent the both of them shooting back towards the ground with the aid of gravity. El is planning to pile-drive him into the ground!

* * *

 _"Our mission is over, you guys can go back to your homes now, why are you still following us?"_

 _"You guys are mages, right?! Please, let us follow you!" The green-haired boy pleaded._

 _"We don't have a place to return to anymore. None of us have any family left." The only girl in the group whispered._

 _"You saved us when nobody bothered to. It may just be another job for you, but it is a job that nobody bothered to take until now. The mayor told us that the job had been posted for months until you guys decided to take the job and saved us. Who knows where we would have been shipped to if you hadn't saved us! We have magic too! We wouldn't be a hindrance! Please!" The blue-haired boy with a tattoo splayed across his face begged as he surrounded the two Fairy Tail mages with the other two kids._

 _Laxus felt very surprised and unsure. This is not part of the job description! El just elbowed him in the ribs and rolled his eyes._

 _"Just take them in. You said you wanted to form a team right? Might as well start from scratch." El turned around to address the three kids they rescued from the slave traffickers. "What are your names?"_

 _"My name is Freed!" The green-haired boy announced. "The girl is Evergreen and the one with blue hair is Bickslow!"_

 _"Hey! Don't go accepting people into our group without my permission! I'm the leader here!" Laxus cried out in indignation._

 _El just fixed a questioning stare at him._

 _"Were you planning to reject them?"_

 _"Uh...no..." Laxus rubbed the back of his head sheepishly._

 _"Then it's settled then." El replied and dusted his hands. "What are we naming our little group?"_

 _"The Spear of the Thunder God!" Laxus cried out as he raised a fist into the air and stared at El with determination burning in his eyes. He's the leader! He will be the one making the decisions and he will be the one naming their team!_

 _"Too long." El drawled out. "It will be hard for people to remember our team's name."_

 _Laxus butted heads with El. "Oh yea? I like to see you try, you lazybum!"_

 _El ignored Laxus's comment and continued to walk forward as he closed his eyes in thought and arms crossed in front of his chest. After a few steps, he spun around and faced the four of them._

 _"How about the Thunder God Tribe?"_

* * *

With a roar, Laxus supercharged himself with lightning and El was forced to loosen his grip on him. Laxus changed his direction at a ninety degree angle and flew horizontal to the ground as he managed to avoid being driven into the ground headfirst like a screw. El backflipped a few times to reduce his momentum as he landed on the ground. Laxus sucked in a breath as he collected his magic into his mouth. El stood with his legs shoulder-width apart as he raised an opened palm in Laxus's direction.

"Lightning Dragon's-/ Shinra-"

 **"ROAR!/ TENSEI!"**

The resulting blast forced the two mages to retreat backwards. The interior of Kardia Cathedral had been so thoroughly destroyed in their rampage that it is near unrecognisable now.

"EL!"

Both S Class mages took a temporary pause in their battle as they looked to see who had interrupted their battle. Natsu, Gajeel, Erza, and Jellal had appeared at the entrance of the cathedral.

"How long have you guys been here?" Laxus heard El called out. "What is the state of things now?!"

"We have evacuated the townsfolk from the immediate surroundings!" Erza replied as she requipped into her Lightning Empress Armour. "Let us help you, El!"

Laxus began to giggle softly, which caught the wary stares of the other Fairy Tail mages. Unable to control his laughter any longer, Laxus burst out hysterically.

"HAHAHAHAHA! I forgot that you took down the Thunder Palace, El! As expected from the one who would have been my Ace!" Laxus cried out as a sinister looking magic circle appeared beneath him and disappeared shortly after. "If there is one thing that I learnt from you, it is to be prepared for any and all kinds of scenarios. Thank you for the lesson, El!"

"What did you do this time?!" El bit out.

"I have summoned several mechas on the outskirts of Magnolia! They will be making their way inwards to the city! What do you _think_ will happen, eh?!"

"Mechas?!" Jellal shouted out in surprise. "Just a single one of it can eradicate the entire town!"

"YOU-!" Erza wanted to scream something at Laxus, but held her tongue. She turned to El. "El, can you continue to hold Laxus off? The four of us will destroy the mechas and prevent them from getting into the city!"

"No." El spoke calmly as he reined in his powers and the armour on his body disappeared, much to everyone's surprise. "Defeating Laxus isn't the priority anymore, the priority is the safety of Magnolia and its citizens. My defensive powers are better suited to stop the mechas than fighting Laxus, and from what I know, mechas are magical weapons that can possibly be on a S Class threat level. Time is of the essence here, I don't think I can bring Laxus down quickly, at least not without serious repercussions to myself or destroying a large part of Magnolia in the process. Laxus is a Dragon Slayer, so Natsu and Gajeel may actually be better suited than me in taking him down." El turned around as he walked towards the group and faced the two aforementioned Dragon Slayers. "You guys think you got what it takes to take on Laxus?"

"Hell yeah!" Natsu exclaimed as he punched his fists together and burst into flames. "I'm all fired up now!"

"Gihihihi." Gajeel laughed out as metal scales started to form on his body. "Leave it to me, I have a score to settle with the bastard." Gajeel turned to El with a questioning look. "Aegis, you mentioned that Laxus is a Dragon Slayer?"

"He is a second-generation Dragon Slayer. He wasn't trained by a real dragon." El quickly explained. "I will tell you the specifics later after our battles. You guys better not lose."

"So you are just gonna leave me like that? Again?" Laxus growled out and looked at El. "At least finish our battle!"

El turned back to look at Laxus. "I'm not the one who can bring you back." El walked to stand beside Erza and Jellal and looked back to Natsu and Gajeel. "They can, so I'm leaving things to them."

"ELDEN!" Laxus shouted in rage as he charged at El with his Lightning Body.

"Your opponent is me! Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!" Natsu cried out as he intercepted Laxus and punched him with his fists that was lit with fire.

"He's MY opponent! Iron Dragon's Lance!" Laxus twisted his body out of the way as a large iron pole attempted to strike at him from above. The Fire and Iron Dragon Slayer worked together as they charged at Laxus and unleashed their attacks at him. El had disappeared together with Erza and Jellal during this short period of time.

"Get out of my way! Lightning Dragon's Breakdown Fist!"

* * *

"How are we going to stop the five mechas when they are only three of us?!" Erza questioned El as they made their way out of the cathedral. El simply looked into the air before speaking to no one in particular.

"Come out, Mystogan. I know you are here somewhere."

Much to Erza's and Jellal's surprise, the most elusive member and the final S Class mage of Fairy Tail shimmered into view by their side as they ran together to find the mechas Laxus had mentioned.

"I have located the mechas. There are five of them and all of them are spread out and positioned at a different corner of Magnolia in the shape of a pentagon. We will need to split up to deal with them." Mystogan wasted no time as he spoke through his mask. He was somehow informed about the entire situation despite not being seen prior to his appearance.

"Damn it!" Erza swore as she continued to run. "There's no one else!"

"There ought to be members who were not involved in the battles throughout Magnolia, or those who are still able to continue fighting. We can call them to band up together to help take down the last mecha." Jellal suggested.

"How are we going to do it? We need to be quick about it too, there's not much time left until the mechas reach Magnolia." Mystogan spoke up. This is probably the most Erza and El had seen Mystogan talked.

"Leave that part to me. I have an idea."El paused in his running as he raised a single palm into the air. "Mystogan, where are the exact locations of the mechas?"


	12. Chapter 12- We'll Always Watch Over You

_"Look! In the sky!"_

The rest of the Fairy Tail mages that lay scattered around Magnolia looked up at the sky from the ground they are laying on upon receiving Warren's telepathy.

 _"Warren?"_

 _"The sky? Are those...words?"_

 _"Anyone who is still fighting, give it a rest! Listen up! All of you! Look at the sky!"_ Warren urged through his telepathy once more as he tried to connect his magic to as many Fairy Tail mages as possible, prompting anyone who is still conscious to look up.

True to Warren's words, a line of words can be seen floating in the air above Magnolia.

"Five mechas outside Magnolia, the S Class mages will deal with four of them, the rest of you take out the one outside... Lake Scilioria? That's right next to our guild building!" Lucy exclaimed out loud as she read the words in the air, which was made up of El's barriers taking the shape of alphabets and stringed together into a sentence as he let them hang there.

"Aye! We need to go there ASAP!" Happy stated as he summoned his wings once more and picked Lucy up. They had helped to evacuate the townsfolk like what Jellal had asked although the reason the both of them gave was 'to prepare for the upcoming Fantasia parade'. Lucy wasn't sure how many of the townsfolk actually bought their bullshit story, but at least they listened to her and moved out of the way.

The townsfolk had learnt by now not to get in the way of any fights Fairy Tail had gotten themselves into.

"Lucy! You got heavier!"

"Shut up, you damn cat! Just hurry and fly us to Lake Scilioria!"

Lucy focused on the telepathic link in her mind once more as she tried to connect to everyone else with Warren's magic.

 _"Lucy speaking! Happy and I are on our way!"_

 _"This is Alzack! I am on my way as well!"_

 _"Jet and I too! Hang in there!"_

 _"Gray here! Wait for me!"_

 _"Lisanna-nee and I are making our way there!"_

More and more of the guild members who are conscious and still able to fight started to voice their participation and make their way to Lake Scilioria. Lucy's heart beat faster as she flew in the air with Happy. Mechas?! Why are there mechas here?! Laxus was crazy enough to unleash mechas onto Magnolia? There were five of them too!

Lucy hoped that their fellow S Class mages can take down the mechas on their own. Mechas may be a recent invention, but according to rumours, a single mecha hold the power equivalent to those of a small army. There are some that is said to be on a level of an S Class mage. How did Laxus get his hands on five of them?

* * *

Lisanna ran towards Lake Scilioria with Yukino to stop the mecha from invading Magnolia. If she had her way, Yukino will be at the guild right now and _not_ be facing a weapon with the power of a small army. However, Yukino was insistent on helping out however she can and Mira-nee had gave her consent as well. Yukino had a point, they can't coddle her forever. She has to face such situations sooner or later if she wants to grow to be a powerful mage. At least the current situation is being dealt with on their home turf and hence a lot more safer for her. Mira-nee is in no condition to continue fighting after expending most of her magic powers and had remained in the guild to take care of the injured who made their way back there. Bisca is still out from taking a direct lightning blast from the Thunder Palace when she tried to shoot it down while Levy is on her way to Kardia Cathedral to persuade Laxus from fighting any longer.

Master's condition is taking a turn for the worse but thankfully, Porlyusica had arrived.

They soon reached Lake Scilioria and saw Gray, Jet, and Droy already there and combining their efforts to try and herd the mecha away from Magnolia. The mecha is a huge humanoid that is turquoise blue in colour with many tribal markings on it and wore a demonic mask as its face. The size of the humanoid mecha is even bigger than their guild hall. Jet is currently distracting it by hitting and dashing around it at high speeds and being a general annoyance while Droy handles the crowd control by restricting its movements with his plants. Gray created numerous weapons made of ice as he tried to blast, hack, slice, and freeze the humanoid.

It is not having much of an effect. All of them are too worn out from their earlier battles to be able to unleash their full strength.

"Animal Soul: Rhino!"

Lisanna transformed into a bulky rhino as she rammed herself into the mecha and forced it to take a few clumsy steps backward to regain its balance.

"Nice one Lisanna! Ice-Make: Floor!"

Gray quickly made a slippery floor of ice beneath the mecha and it slipped and fell down on its back in a huge crash. Droy wasted no time in wrapping it up with the vines of the plants he grew with his magic while Yukino summoned Libra to increase the gravity around the area the moment the mecha has been tied up, hoping to restrain it long enough for them to destroy it.

"Gun Magic: Tornado Shot!"

Two bullets were shot as they generated two tornadoes before merging into a single large tornado and impacted against the fallen mecha.

"Alzack!" Lisanna cried out in joy as another of their nakama joined in the fight against the mecha.

"Open: Gate of the Maiden, Virgo!"

A large hole soon appeared below the mecha as it dropped deep into the ground. Lucy's here too!

"Sand Rebellion!"

"Purple Rain!"

"Wood-Make: The Distance between the Two is Forever!"

"Smoke Crush!"

More and more of Fairy Tail members started to arrive to help out at Lake Scilioria in dealing with the humanoid mecha as they shot their attacks towards the hole which the mecha is trapped in. They can do this!

"Did we get that thing?" Max inquired as they waited for the resulting cloud of smoke to dissipate.

"No clue." Wakaba shook his head as he continued to let his Smoke Magic surround him like a shroud. "But the combined powers of our attacks should have done something."

The earth suddenly shook as the mecha leapt out high into the air from the hole and landed with another earthquake on its two legs. The red crystals that made its eyes gleamed ominously as its chest opened up to reveal a huge cannon in the middle of it.

"Oh shit!"

"Run!"

"Get away from it!"

The Fairy Tail members barely managed to get out of the way when a huge laser beam blasted out from the cannon and swept through the surrounding area, digging huge trenches into the ground. The mecha did not stop there as it started to make its way forward and started to punch at anyone it could see and the fairies were forced to scramble. Yukino took another good look at the mecha, it wasn't even dented from their attacks, something which the other mages have realised too.

"Damn it! What does it take to even scratch this thing!" Wakaba complained as he tried to restrain the mecha with his Smoke Magic together with Laki, Max, and Droy. They are barely holding it back as it is.

"We need something strong enough to take it out in one hit!" Gray shouted out as he rained spears of ice down on the mecha and concentrated his attacks at a single spot. To his horror, the result was the same, the mecha didn't even notice Gray's attacks impacting against it.

"Does anyone have an attack that strong?!" Macao shouted back towards the rest of the mages who had arrived to help hold off the mecha as he continued to fire his attacks while trying to dodge the mecha's swinging arms, which have torn itself free from its constraints.

"I don't think so!" Jet replied while trying to kick the mecha in its eyes, trying to see if doing so can take out one of its senses. To his horror, the eyes were able to shoot out laser beams as well and he would have two clean holes shot through his body if Happy didn't swooped down from the air in time to drag him out of there. Max called upon his sand to cover their retreat.

Yukino clenched her fists. She had just added a very destructive spell in her arsenal thanks to El-niichan, but the problems is that she doesn't have the required amount of magic power to utilise it. In order for the spell to unleash its full effect, it would be preferred if the user's natural magic is related to the power of the stars or to be something of a similar nature. Jellal would probably qualify since he has Heavenly Body magic, he would have the necessary firepower to pull it off as well. However, Jellal isn't here with them. Is there anyone else in the guild that isn't Jellal and can also invoke the spell?

A head with golden yellow hair bobbed about at the edge of her vision. _Lucy_! Of course! She is also a Celestial Spirit mage like her as well! She can definitely use the spell! Yukino does not have the required magic power to activate the spell, and she isn't sure if Lucy is able to use it on her own as well, but if they combined their powers...

"Guys!" Yukino called out as she dismissed Libra back to the Celestial Spirit World, she would need to conserve her magic to pull off the spell. Libra is not going to be of much help at this point anyway. "I have a spell that can probably take the mecha out in one hit, but I can only use it with Lucy's help! I don't have enough power to use it alone! Buy us some time, the spell has a long activation process since it's my first time using it for real! Make sure to pin it down for us!"

"Are you sure the spell can take it out?!" Max hollered as he avoided a kick that would have sent him flying into the depths of the lake.

"You got a better idea?!" Yukino argued back, feeling slightly offended that her capabilities as a mage is being doubted. She may be young, but she's not a helpless kid, damn it!

"We will buy you time, Yukino, Lucy! Just do it!" Lisanna called out as she transformed into a kangaroo and kicked the mecha at the back of one of its knee, unbalancing it and forcing it to kneel down.

"How can I help?" Lucy ran up to Yukino's side from where she was previously.

"I need your magic powers." Yukino informed Lucy. "If we combined our powers together, we might just have enough power to successfully invoke the spell I'm planning to use. I'm not very sure whether it could be done, it's my first time using it in combat and I only started to learn it recently. Leave the incantation to me." Yukino held out her right hand to grab Lucy's left one, clasping it and interlocking their fingers. The two Celestial Spirit mages pointed their joint hands together at the mecha and Yukino began to chant with their backs pressed against each other. Both Celestial Spirit mages closed their eyes in concentration as they gathered the magic within their bodies in preparation for the spell.

"Survey the heavens, Open the heavens. All the stars, far and wide..."

Macao transformed his purple fire into a gigantic fist as it punched the mecha at the side of its face. Gray dropped a huge hammer made of solid ice at the mecha from above but the mecha simply shrugged it off.

"Show me thy appearance, with such shine."

In an attempt to trap the mecha, Max turned the surrounding ground into a sand pit as the mecha slowly sunk into the man-made quicksand much to their delight. Laki immediately followed up by using her Wood-Make to create numerous hands made of wood to pull it down and Droy grew more plants to wrap around the mecha's limbs to try and restrict its movements once more.

"Oh Tetrabiblos. I am the ruler of the stars..."

Alzack continued to shoot at the mecha from afar while running away from the debris the mecha had somehow managed to pick up from the sandpit and threw at him. He was nearly hammered by one of them but Wakaba managed to smash it into smithereens at the last minute with his Smoke Magic, saving Alzack and preventing him from suffering any grievous injuries.

"Aspect become complete. Open thy malevolent gate..."

Gray created a huge ice prison to trap the mecha but it broke free from the constraints of wood and vine once again. It punched against the icy prison, smashing it into many small shards of broken ice.

"Oh 88 Stars of the heaven..."

A large magic circle formed beneath Lucy and Yukino as a bright light engulfed the both of them. The two Celestial Spirit mages seemed blissfully unaware of their chaotic surroundings as their eyes remained closed and Yukino continued to chant, seemingly absorbed in a world of their own. Countless spheres descended down from the sky and surrounded the two mages. The light from the spheres grew brighter and brighter and everyone in the area paused in their attacks, including the mecha, mesmerised by the sight of such beautiful magic taking place in front of their very eyes.

Just when the light couldn't get any brighter, Yukino and Lucy suddenly opened their eyes as one and pointed their joint hands at the mecha, which is still knee-deep in Max's sandpit.

"Shine!"

The light coalesced around Yukino and Lucy as the magical pressure emitted from the two mages built up and shook the very earth itself.

" **Urano Metria!** "

* * *

Mystogan darted around the mecha elusively as he tried to find its weak points. The dragonoid mecha lashed out with its long tail to slam at Mystogan but he turned his body into mist to avoid the attack. Mystogan narrowed his eyes at the mecha. The mecha have sturdy defenses and is capable of launching devastating attacks with the cannon built into its mouth. Its physical strength is nothing to joke at either. He needs to take it down in one hit before the magic stored in the lacrimas in his magic staves runs out. On top of that, this dragonoid mecha makes him very uneasy.

It reminded him too much of the Dorma Anim.

Shaking the thoughts of that thrice-cursed dragon armour in his homeland out of his head, Mystogan began to run through the options he had to take down this walking calamity.

There wasn't much he could do, much to his frustration.

Using one of his staves to manipulate the earth, he rose a huge amount of mud from the ground to temporarily choke up the the mouth of the cannons attached to the back of the mecha. The mecha opened its jaws to fire the cannon built within it at Jellal but he reflected the attack back with Three Layered Magic Circle: Mirror Water.

The mecha reeled back from the impact and tried to stomp down on him this time with his gigantic foot. Mystogan simply flew into the air with a variation of Air Magic employed by one of his staves and watched the mecha from his vantage point.

To his surprise, one of the mecha's cannon on its back was blown off. Was that due to the attack he reflected back at the mecha earlier on?

Mystogan dodged a barrage of missiles that the mecha launched at him from the missile launchers hidden under the metal hide of the mecha's thigh. He looked back at the destroyed cannon in thought. If what he speculated is true, then that means that the mecha's armour is not strong enough to defend itself from its own attacks. He can work with that.

But first, he have to bait the mecha to use its strongest attack to finish it in one clean hit.

Mystogan whipped out another stave from his back, it is one that he does not usually use as its effects can be very fatal if used on a living target. However, the mecha is not a living organism and there is no one piloting it. It is able to go on autopilot thanks to the large amount of runes that someone had engraved on its heavily armoured chest. That was probably Freed's handiwork. It is an ingenious idea to animate the weapon with runes, and it couldn't have been easy trying to get it to do what it is currently doing without any form of supervision, but such use of magic is being employed for the wrong purpose.

Using the stave he just picked out, Mystogan swung it at the mecha's direction as a dense cloud of mist appeared around the mecha's immediate surroundings. Mystogan floated out of the mist's reach, he doesn't want to be caught up in it. This mist does not discriminate between friend and foe in its attacks.

The armour of the mecha started to melt slowly as the acidic mist corroded its armour. The computer system within the mecha immediately recognised it as a threat and computed the best course of action. The mecha tried to move out of the mist, but Mystogan commanded the cloud of mist to follow the mecha and used another stave to control the earth to box the mecha with earth walls he raised from the ground, trying to trap it.

Seeing that avoiding is not an option, the mecha blasted its cannons in all directions, dispersing the acidic mist and destroying the earthen walls. Its eyes glowed as it locked into Mystogan and opened its robotic jaws. A dangerous amount of magical energy was being charged up in the cannon within the mecha's mouth and Mystogan can hear the engine of the mecha whirling in overdrive to power the attack with ridiculous amount of energy.

Sweat dripped down from Mystogan's forehead as he fought against the pressure he is facing in dealing with the mecha. It is proving to be a troublesome opponent even for an S Class mage like him. Mystogan had no idea where Laxus procured five of these state-of-the-art weapons, but he doesn't want to know.

Mystogan let his staves floated around him protectively as he took on one of the riskiest gambles he had embarked on. Maybe he should have took a private lesson or two from Cana when it comes to gambling, it might increase his chances of surviving. If he tried to reflect the attack too early, the mecha might identify the plan he's hatching and come up with a counter strategy, something which he has no desire to see happen. If he is too late in reflecting the attack, he will most probably have to pay for his mistake with his life.

Mystogan sighed, if only Laxus was a little saner, this might not happen.

The mecha shot out a condensed beam of bright red magical energy just as Mystogan activated his magic staves at its full power.

"Three Layered Magic Circle: Mirror Water!"

* * *

"What's the old man and El playing at?! Do they not give a shit what happens to the town?!"

"Oh don't get so worked up, Laxus." Natsu called out as he dodged Laxus's attacks. "It's not like anything is going to happen."

"The hell you talking about?!" Laxus shouted as he tried to punch Natsu, only for the Fire Dragon Slayer to parry it and return it with a flaming kick of his own.

"What good does it do for you to destroy the town? You are getting all worked up because you really want to stop this thing yourself, right?" Natsu deduced as he jumped backwards and skidded back by a few steps. Judging from Laxus's facial expression, he have hit the nail on the head.

"Don't worry. El, Erza, and the blue Jelly will handle the mechas." Natsu continued as he dashed forward with his fists on fire. "Not that easy to keep up an act, is it?! LAXUS!"

Laxus's face contorted in rage as he collected a massive amount of lightning in his right hand.

"DON'T YOU GET SO DAMN COCKY WITH ME!"

Laxus sent another Raging Bolt at Natsu, but Gajeel grabbed him out of there in time and fired an Iron Dragon's Roar in retaliation. Natsu regained his bearings, and Gajeel threw him towards Laxus like a javelin. Laxus tried to grab onto Natsu, but Natsu attacked with his Fire Dragon's Wing Attack, forcing Laxus backwards. Gajeel joined in the fight and launched numerous iron poles at Laxus, only for him to zip into the air in his lightning form. He was however intercepted by Natsu when he swiped at Laxus in a claw-like fashion and summoned a furious wave of flames to cut off his escape into the air.

"Nothing's gonna happen, Laxus!"

"SHUT UP!"

Just at that exact moment, five bright beacons of light shone on the outskirts of Magnolia like the stars on a cloudless night, catching the attention of the three Dragon Slayers that are having their battle in the cathedral. Somewhere near Lake Scilioria, a huge light shot into the sky that dispersed the clouds. Near the Magnolia Train Station at the east, a bright red light beam of light shot into the direction of the train station, only for it to suddenly changed its course and reflected backwards, creating a massive explosion of fireworks. At the southern outskirts of Magnolia, a bright golden beam of light pushed a tiger mecha outwards into the sky and into the clouds. The tiger mecha tried to fight back, but a huge meteor appeared right on top of it and fell onto the mecha from above, destroying it in a spray of bright sparks that illuminated the sky with falling pieces of rocks. Near the western outskirts, a few rock features in the mountainous area was suddenly cut down by at least a few stories in height and fell in an explosion of smoke and fire. At the northwest corner of Magnolia, a huge arrow pierced through a bird mecha that was flying in the sky and a sea of pink petals appeared in the air and engulfed the mecha in a cyclone, ripping it to shreds.

"See that?" Natsu said as the three Dragon Slayers watched the proceedings. "You really think this guild needs to change so badly? We are all part of the same group. How's a guy who doesn't try to be part of that group supposed to be the Master, huh, Laxus?"

Laxus screamed in fury as he released more of his powers, the resulting magical pressure blasting apart the area around where Laxus stood and formed a huge crater underneath him. Natsu and Gajeel were onto him immediately, not wanting Laxus to increase his powers even further. Laxus threw a spear of lightning towards Gajeel which forced him to duck. Natsu continued his charge as he tried to get Laxus with his fire, but was kicked brutally in Gajeel's direction and the two of them were sent sprawling onto the ground.

"Lightning Dragon's Roar!"

The huge blast of lightning hit the duo and dug a huge trench through the floors of the cathedral. Natsu and Gajeel laid on the floor, heavily injured and trying to stand up on their feet again but to no avail. Both of them stared in fear and awe as Laxus increased his powers even further and shrouded himself in lightning once more. He brought both his palms close to each other in front of his chest, a familiar surge of magic swelled as Laxus answered Natsu's question.

"You asked me how I am going to be the Master, Natsu? Through force."

The spell that Laxus was trying to cast seemed to suck the atmosphere dry as both Natsu and Gajeel recognised the spell.

"Fairy Law?" Gajeel muttered in disbelief. "The attack that defeated Master Jose in a single blow?"

"Stop! Laxus!" Natsu yelled out as he tried to crawl towards Laxus in his damaged body.

"Laxus!" Levy's voice carried over to the cathedral as she stood by the entrance, a look of worry and sadness marred her face. When had she get there? "Your own grandfather is on death's door!"

There was a slight change of expression in Laxus's eyes, and Gajeel took that as a sign of hesitation for Laxus. Good, it will be for the best if Laxus stopped the battle on his own accord, Gajeel have no wish to continue fighting a monster like Laxus. He's way too strong for him to handle. Why did Master Jose thought that it was a good idea to wage war against Fairy Tail when there are monsters like Laxus in the guild? According to what he knew from the members of Fairy Tail, Laxus and the Aegis weren't even the strongest mages Fairy Tail had to offer. That honour belonged to Gildarts. He wasn't present in the guild war together with Laxus and the elusive Mystogan. If all of Fairy Tail's S Class mages were present during the guild war...

Gajeel shivered at the thought. Thank the heavens that didn't happen. He might had lost his life if that had happened.

"So please! Laxus! Stop this! Just go and see him!"

The battle field remained silent, the only noise was the swirling of the wind and Laxus's lightning armour that is still active and crackling. Laxus had a stunned expression on his face and he looked deep in thought. However, Fairy Law is still active and continued to charge up in power.

"Laxus!" Levy cried out.

"Well the timing couldn't be more convenient." Laxus spoke slowly as a deranged grin crept up his face, his previous stunned expression now gone. "My chance of becoming Master just went up again!"

"You-!" Gajeel tried to find words, but found himself unable to say anything else from his position on the floor. This guy! How can a person be so heartless?!

"DIE FAIRY TAIL!" Laxus roared out as the floor cracked into many pieces. The slabs of debris rose into the air in response to Laxus's tremendous power as Laxus used his magic to fuel Fairy Law. "I WILL BUILD YOU UP AGAIN FROM SCRATCH! A GUILD THAT WILL NEVER LOSE! ONE THAT WILL MAKE EVERYONE TREMBLE IN FEAR!" Laxus eyes glinted in sickening glee as his magic began to take the form of a small glowing sphere within his palms.

"I WILL MAKE THE ULTIMATE GUILD! FAIRY LAW! ACTIVATE!"

* * *

The Battle of Fairy Tail ended in defeat for the Thunder God Tribe when Gajeel and Natsu managed to take down Laxus together, similar to the outcome that I had remembered based on my prior knowledge from my previous world. Laxus had also tried to use Fairy Law, but it didn't have the effect he desired. The entire town came out unharmed, which I'm sure baffled Laxus. He would have known if he had bothered to read the notes documented in the book that recorded the quirks in using this particular spell. It was the reason I left Natsu and Gajeel alone to fight him. I know for a fact that Laxus loved the guild, hence I was confident that Fairy Law would have failed in harming us and that Natsu's and Gajeel's life will be in no real danger when facing him. It wasn't Laxus's intention to kill them or any one of us. I could tell from my battle with him, he was hesitating during the entire fight. Our fight would have been a lot more brutal if he was really serious in usurping the position of guild master. I wouldn't have got off with such light injuries.

Fairy Law peered into the depths of the user's heart, there is no way you can lie to your magic. No matter what he did, deep down somewhere, Laxus loved Fairy Tail just as hard as everyone else in the guild.

Natsu and Gajeel emerged victorious in their fight, but the both of them were mummified in bandages the moment we were done with treating their injuries. I had lost count on the number of bruises they sported all across their bodies and the number of bones they broke, but they had won in spite of it. I'm glad I made the choice to let them fight Laxus just as what had happened in canon. I had failed to get Laxus back many years ago, and I don't think I will get him back even if I bested him in combat. I have a feeling that it will just widen the rift between us. I think that the intervention of a third party that gives no fucks was what we needed, and Natsu fulfilled that role splendidly. Laxus and I were always regarded as each other's equals, I don't want to break that status quo. Furthermore, I still believe that he will be the one who inherit Master Makarov to be Fairy Tail's guild master one day. He has to be the strongest in the guild for that to happen. Even if I am capable in bringing him down, I cannot defeat him in front of the other members of the guild in a one on one battle. They would just push me to be the Master instead of Laxus, something which I do not want to see happen. I have no wish to take Laxus's dream away from him. I had planned on taking Laxus down together with the help of Erza, Jellal, Natsu, and Gajeel when they appeared, which will not cause anyone to doubt Laxus's strength in the future when he presented himself as a candidate for the next guild master of Fairy Tail since he was unfairly outnumbered, but the sudden threat of mechas had forced me to abandon that idea.

The entire Battle of Fairy Tail arc may be brushed off as a small footnote at the bottom of my story in this life since the outcome of the arc remained the same despite the appearances of the mechas, but it is another evidence that my presence had changed the events in this world.

Another reason why I let Natsu and Gajeel fight Laxus is also because they needed the experience to face a formidable foe like Laxus. I can't quite remember about the final battle Fairy Tail had towards the end of the manga series, but I remembered that Acnologia was the final foe they faced and that the seven Dragon Slayers were instrumental in stopping him. I will help wherever I can, but I can't fight all of their future battles for them. They need to grow stronger using their own powers and the battles they went through in canon were the battles that helped them to grow. I want to change our fate for the better in the future battles that we will face, but in case things don't work out, I need them to be as strong as possible, preferably even stronger than what they have been in canon. The Monster Legion are definitely stronger than their canon counterparts, which is proof that it can be done. I want to extend the same possibility to at least the main cast of Fairy Tail if possible.

For the sake of the future battles we will be going through, I cannot deny Natsu and Gajeel of their battle with Laxus. Experience is the best teacher, and those two are hands-on type of learners that learnt best under pressure.

Master's life is no longer in immediate danger thanks to Porlyusica and everyone let out a sigh of relief at the news. The Fantasia parade has been postponed to tomorrow night in light of what had happened today.

"El?" Mira called out to me, seeing that I had spaced out while helping her tend to the injured.

"I think it will be best if I go and see him, Mira. It will only be for a short while and it's not like he will try to do anything funny again. It's time we reconciled." I said as I gave a quick kiss to her forehead. "I won't take long."

Mira gave me a sweet smile as she looked into my eyes. "Get going then. I can deal with the remaining injured members of the guild. Erza is helping as well."

I gave a sideway glance from my position in the guild hall. An area in the guild hall was cleared out to treat the injured members of the guild. Since both my injuries and Mira's weren't serious other than a slight case of magic exhaustion, we were helping to dress the wounds of the other members who needed the help. Erza had apparently volunteered as well among other things and had dressed herself in her nurse outfit in her no-nonsense-and-totally-serious attitude. Judging from the pained screams and horrified expressions of her patients, her treatment method must have been...unique.

"Ahhh! NO! STOP!"

"OUCH! NONONONONO! DON'T! NOT _DOWN_ THERE ERZA!" The clinking of swords can be heard as the member in question fell into silence.

"I DON'T NEED AN AMPUTATION!" Another member ran out of the guild for dear life as he clutched onto his injured right arm with his left.

"THAT SYRINGE IS WAY TOO _BIIIIIIIIG_!" Scuffling can be heard followed by a painful high-pitched scream.

"SOMEONE SAVE US!"

"I'm not sure if what she is doing is helping or making things worse." I informed Mira bluntly. Jellal didn't make a very encouraging sight, he is already knocked out from Erza's treatment methods with his eyes rolled to the back of his head and lying sprawled on the top of one of the tables. If even someone on the Wizard Saint's level didn't survive her treatment process awake and conscious, I don't think anyone else can survive it either.

Mira giggled softly as she shooed me out.

"Oh, don't worry about them. One of your favourite phrase went something like this, didn't it? 'What doesn't kill you makes you stronger'. They will live."

"And possibly mentally scarred for life." I joked and we both giggled out of earshot. I looked back at the love of my life as we walked hand-in-hand out of the guild hall.

"Do you want to crash at my place tonight? Knowing the faults of your magic, you might need the help to wake up in time tomorrow for the preparation for the Fantasia Parade."

I wiggled my eyebrows at Mira suggestively. "Is that an invitation to your bed, Mira? That would definitely be a 'yes' for me."

Mira slapped the bandaged area on my arm and had a satisfied look in her eyes when I let out a pained yelp.

"My siblings lived in the same household as me, you idiot. Even if I give you the green light, there's no way I will let you into my bed in their presence!" She whispered harshly. "Obviously you will be sleeping in Elfman's room when I offered to let you crash at my place!"

"Does that mean that if they are not around..."

Mira suddenly gave a very deceptively sweet smile in my direction and the air around her chilled drastically. A demonic visage appeared behind her as I felt shivers down my back.

Have I mentioned that anime effects are really a thing here?

"I believe you have someone to meet, El?"

"Y-Yes Ma'am." I quickly saluted and flew off high into the air. I might have went too far with that perverted comment, a world of pain would be waiting for me if I lingered there any longer.

Number one rule when dealing with Mira: if her she-demon personality comes out to play, get the hell out of there.

* * *

I entered Laxus's apartment using the spare key I knew he always kept hidden under the third flowerpot from the right in front of his door. His habits hadn't changed when I parted ways with him years ago.

The entire Thunder God Tribe was there and they stared at me with eyes widened in shock with the exception of Laxus. He must have smelt my approach since I did not bother concealing my presence. Evergreen is currently helping to bandage Freed's injuries and from what I could see, Mira had done a number on him. Laxus is sitting on a couch with bandages across his entire torso and remained shirtless. Bickslow is shirtless as well and groaning on the floor in pain. He had removed his visor. His injuries were already taken care of.

There were many things I wanted to say to them. They were the first team that I ever had the chance to be a part of and I was the founder of the team together with Laxus. The five of us were close to each other, in almost like a sibling kind of way. Unexpectedly, my first words to them after the battle conveyed none of the things I had planned in my head during my journey here. The words came out of my mouth even before I can think.

"You guys look like shit."

My words seemed to lift a spell in the room as Freed, Evergreen, and Bickslow glomped me in a hug and toppled me onto the floor.

"Elden-sama!" Freed cried out in joy as tears streamed down his face like waterfalls, soaking my shirt. I will need to change out of my shirt after this.

"El!" Bickslow shouted in joy as his dolls chanted my name together with him.

Evergreen said nothing as she hugged me together with the two of them, but I had never seen such a happy expression on her face in such a long time.

"Guys?" I called out as I tried to get their attention, but my voice was muffled from the bodies piled up onto me. "I need some room to breathe. Guys? Guys?"

The pressure on my body suddenly lifted and I saw Laxus picking them up like kicked puppies who had done something wrong and set them down on the floor beside him. The two of us stared in silence as a mixture of expressions crossed our faces. I am fairly certain that Laxus had took a trip down memory lane like what I did.

We had spent a lot of time together after all.

"Can't believe you got your ass handed to you by Gajeel and Natsu, sparky."

"Hmph, at least I don't need to sleep after every battle. Only a lazybum like you use such lazy magic. At least I got you to move around in our battle. Look at you, you are still lying on the floor."

The two of us continued to stare heatedly at each other and I can see the rest of the Thunder God Tribe sweating in fear at the amount of tension in the air, probably fearing that the two of us will come to blows soon.

After a few seconds, Laxus and I just chuckled as he helped me up from my position on the ground. We gave each other a fist bump like what we usually do when we were younger after the successful completion of a mission together.

"Glad to see that you are finally back, Laxus."

Laxus looked apologetic as he let his arm fall back to his side.

"Sorry El, I was a really huge jerk, aren't I?"

"Yes, you were." I replied and sat down onto the couch and took a drink from Laxus's mug. I raised an eyebrow in his direction at the taste of the drink. "Orange juice? Really? Laxus, this drink is for kids. I thought you grew out of it after we parted ways."

"Don't drink it then." Laxus grumbled as he snatched the mug away from me and sat down by my side while downing the contents in one gulp. Bickslow came back with more drinks and we sat down together just like old times.

"We tried to wean Laxus off it, El. Trust me, we tried." Bickslow chattered as he handed the drinks to the rest of us using his dolls. "Sadly, we didn't succeed. You will have to make do with orange juice for now, it's all Laxus have in his fridge at the moment. We didn't have the time to stock up on the food yet."

"Elden-sama! If you so wish it, I can go to the market now to get other drinks!"

"It's ok, Freed. Get your injuries treated first." I diffused Freed before he got into one of his fanatic moments, much to everyone's else hidden relief. "Are you guys ok? Need to go see Porlyusica or something?"

"We are fine. Thanks for asking." Evergreen replied on behalf of the team as she continued to bandage Freed's injuries.

We continued to sit in silence as we enjoyed each other's company. After a short while, I decided to break the silence.

"Master is alright now, Porlyusica tended to him." I said quietly and saw Laxus's shoulders sagged in relief. "The Fantasia Parade has been postponed to tomorrow."

"What will happen to us now?" Evergreen whispered to no one in particular. "After what we have done..."

"Nothing will happen to any of you." Laxus said resolutely. "So stop worrying yourself. I will talk to gramps."

"You do know what you will be going to face as your punishment, right?" I questioned Laxus.

"I do." Laxus said as he downed another cup of orange juice. "There's only one possible outcome after the shit we pulled."

The rest of the Thunder God Tribe looked at us in confusion but the two of us didn't say another word about this issue. No more words about this issue are needed between the two of us. The remaining time we have is better spent in each other's company. We won't see each other for quite some time after today.

I spent another hour at Laxus's apartment as we made idle talk and tried to catch up with the happenings in our life after I left the team. We laughed at the various shenanigans that we experienced on our jobs and shared among each other the various things we saw. Laxus walked me out when it was time for me to leave. I did promise Mira that I wouldn't take long, and the side effect from using my magic during today's battle is starting to take its toll on me. It is getting harder for me to stay awake.

"Take care of the three of them for me, will you?" Laxus said quietly as we walked through the quiet streets at night, the light from the street lamps illuminating our way. "I know it is no longer possible for you to rejoin and lead the Thunder God Tribe seeing that you have a team of your own now, but who knows what trouble those three will get themselves into if no one is there to keep an eye on them."

"Do you even need to ask? Of course I will." I replied with a roll of my eyes. "I believe that your departure will only be temporary, you can watch over them yourself when you return."

"There's no way gramps-"

"Yes, you will." I cut Laxus off before he could say anything more. "You love the guild as hard, or even harder than anyone of us here. That's enough for me." I put my hands in my pockets and gave him a cheeky grin. "I am still waiting for the day when I can finally address you as _Master Laxus_ , you know? But it might take awhile for me to earn the title of Fairy Tail's Ace, Gildarts is a fucking monster."

Laxus stopped in his tracks as he stared at me with a bewildered expression on his face.

"Y-You... Even after what I have done, you still want me to be guild master?"

"Well, who else is capable of the position?" I retorted. "Gildarts never stayed in the guild for long, Mystogan is a recluse, not that I have the right to criticise him, but you got my point. Erza and Mira is still a little too young, and they are not yet capable enough to lead the guild in terms of strength and experience. Erza might be capable enough one day and she has the leadership qualities needed to be guild master, but she still won't be ready anytime soon." I put my hands behind my head and continued to walk forward. "Besides, can you imagine Erza as guild master? The first thing she will do is to make a list of the 101 dos-and-don'ts in the guild. I don't want that, thank you very much."

Laxus let out a guffaw as he walked beside me. We both know what I just speculated is very likely to happen if Erza ever becomes the guild master.

"How about you then?"

"Nah." I waved off that thought. "I have no wish to deal with complaints of property damage and the nagging from the council on a daily basis. Have you seen the hair on Master's head? Or the lack thereof? See what I mean? His hair is all gone from the stress with paperwork and complaints of our guild from all around Fiore. I like my hair to remain on its rightful place on my head. You can have the honour of dealing with the pile of shit called paperwork."

Laxus pointed an accusing finger at me.

"As my Ace, you are supposed to help me with the paperwork."

"Have you seen Gildarts dealing with any of them? In fact, he is the reason for at least half the stack of complaints Master received on his table everyday whenever he's in town. I think Master is secretly glad the Gildarts is out of town on his 100-year quest even if he is worried for him. The amount of complaints from the townsfolk decreased significantly whenever Gildarts isn't around."

Laxus's eye twitched in annoyance and I quickly diverted the topic.

"Regardless what happens tomorrow, come and watch the Fantasia Parade." I said as we both reached the town square. "If not for yourself, then do it for me."

There is a wetness in Laxus's eye which I pretended not to notice, but he agreed to my request anyway.

"I will."

* * *

Thank whatever deities that are up there in this world that this time, a full night of sleep was all I need to be back in working order again. My fight with Laxus may have been intense, but I did not expend as much magic as I did in the war with Phantom Lord when I used Fairy Gates, one of my best defensive spells with a steep cost with the magic power needed to cast it. The spells I had used in my fight against Laxus drained me, but luckily it can be slept off with a single night of rest.

I had crashed at Mira's place and woke up bright and early the next day with the rest of my team to head off to the guild to prepare for the Fantasia Parade after a quick breakfast. I needed a bit of help in waking up, but a pail of ice-cold water from Yukino did the trick, something she did with unconcealed glee.

My team was put in charge of a parade float that is able to transform its looks randomly with a clever application of Transformation Magic, which is the specialty of the Strauss siblings. Yukino called upon Loke to use him as a light source for the parade float, much to his dismay (he wanted to dance around with the pretty girls in our guild during the parade) but several threats from Yukino to his manhood shut him up immediately. The Strauss siblings will also be showing off their own Take Over forms during the parade while I will create the petals from Senbonzakura to pretty up our parade float when we are making our way around town later on tonight during the parade.

During the parade, we are supposed to make our way around town while dressing up in flamboyant costumes. The Monster Legion knew my dislike for showy things and had a great time trying to force/coerce/trick me to fit into all sorts of ridiculous costumes. I settled for cloaking myself in Susanoo's armour in the end and refused to wear any of the ridiculous costumes they had prepared for me, even barricading myself behind my barriers to prevent them from forcefully chucking me in those monstrosities.

The parade was a blast as the entire Magnolia town cheered as fireworks lit up the night and celebratory music filled the air, completed with our member's performances in their costumes and the parade floats that went along with it. I created many objects with my barriers in the air to satisfy our audiences. From swords, shields, to recreating 2D images of random monsters that I had remembered and met during the jobs that I took on. Mira and her siblings paraded and danced around in their Take Over forms while Yukino wore a cute pink dress which made her look like a princess. Loke carried her on his shoulders as he decorated our parade float with different kinds of flashing lights with his magic. Our parade float changed its form periodically, from dragons (Natsu was adamant to add dragons into the transformation) to beasts and demons, to life-sized models of the various members in our guild. We dazzled our audiences as they kept wanting to see more of the transformation our parade float is capable of doing.

On Master's signal, the entire guild raised their hands up in the air with their index finger stretched upwards and thumb pointing horizontally in a 'L' shape. I know that somewhere out there among the crowd, Laxus is watching the entire proceedings. Even if he is exiled from the guild, we will watch over him.

No matter how long we are separated, Fairy Tail will always watch over its members.

That's the Fairy Tail way.

* * *

 **AN: School life have started to pick up its pace with the amount of homeworks and revisions that I have to do on a near daily basis, so a gentle reminder that there will be noticeably slower updates coming. All of the recent chapters done so far were done in the short breaks I have within lessons and these breaks will most likely be used for studying in the foreseeable future. I still have another chapter in my "stash" so you guys can probably expect it to come out next week when I finally find time to look through it for proof-reading and checking.**

 **If you guys want to read something new in the meantime while waiting for my potential slow updates, there is always my pokemon fanfic, I Just Want To Travel The World, which can be found by clicking on my profile for the pokemon fans out there. It is the first fanfic I wrote and is on a temporary hiatus, so expect to find a number of mistakes in the fic since it's my first work. If you want another FT fanfic with an OC, I recently found another fanfic, Write The Future, written by thegreatroshen, which in my opinion, is a pretty good fanfic with interesting ideas for the magic given to the OC. I personally enjoyed the fanfic very much even if it is only a short 5 chapters. I think that fic deserves a little more love, but that's my personal opinion.**

 **Hoped you guys enjoyed the story so far.**


	13. Chapter 13- Sorano

"Why the heck am **_I_** included in this grand strategy anyway?!"

Took the words out of my mouth right there, Lucy.

"This is a pain for me as well, don't you start complaining." Gray shot back from beside Lucy.

"This is the Master's decision, we have a duty to live up to his expectations." Erza said resolutely and glared at the two of them, daring them to say otherwise. Jellal wisely feigned ignorance and looked out the window. The endless number of trees that passed us by suddenly seemed like a very interesting sight to him.

The entire of Team Natsu (Jellal is also part of that team now) and I were inside a horse-drawn carriage that is heading for the meeting point where representatives of Fairy Tail, Blue Pegasus, Lamia Scale, and Cait Shelter were supposed to meet.

 _"Among the available S Class mages our guild has on hand now to send for this joint mission, only the two of you and Mira are left. I cannot send the three of you together just in case things went south and -touch wood- the three of you perished in battle. It will be detrimental to the guild." Master explained as he gave a tired sigh._ _He had pulled me and Erza aside after he informed the guild that we would sending our own members to take down Oracion Seis._ _"Sending in an existing team instead of creating a temporary one from scratch would be preferable since there wouldn't be a need to train the teamwork between the members. I would have sent the Monster Legion since there are two S Class mages in the team, but Yukino is too young and the team is too specialised in the branch of Transformation type of magic. It won't do well to pit such a highly specialised team against a high-level opponent like the Oracion Seis. Team Shadowgear is not a combat-oriented team. The Thunder God Tribe just lost their team leader and it will take a while even for El to get used to their working dynamics again. Our guild has the most members among the four allied guilds, so the guild masters agreed that Fairy Tail will send the most members. Hence, even if El temporarily rejoined the Thunder God Tribe, the team size will be too small and I will have to add more people to the team anyway, taking us back to square one. So-"_

 _"You decide to send in Team Natsu." I deduced._

 _"Yes." Master confirmed our suspicions. "However, wherever Erza goes, Jellal must follow, and vice versa. That was the agreement we had with the previous Magic Council._ _The council may be in a disarray now and most of the council members had resigned from their positions after the Etherion incident, but their previous ruling regarding Jellal still holds. Ordinarily, this wouldn't be an issue as we did not breach any of the conditions in our agreement. However, considering that this is the Oracion Seis we are talking about, when the new council members step up to form the new Magic Council, they might chew my head off if I sent Jellal to fight the Oracion Seis with Erza as the only S Class mage that is watching over him. I need to send another S Class mage to follow Team Natsu simply to put up a show of us keeping an eye on Jellal." Master turned to look at me. "Do you mind tagging along with Team Natsu, El?"_

 _"No, not really." I replied with a shrug. "We are facing Oracion Seis after all, having someone as powerful as Jellal on our side will increase our chance of victory. My powers will be useful in preventing the other members from coming to harm as well."_

 _"Then this matter is settled. Take a few days to work with Team Natsu on your teamwork, just be sure to reach the meeting point a week later."_

And that's how I found myself involved in the Oracion Seis arc.

I'm not complaining in tagging along for this shit job, I have a vested interest to be involved in this arc. It's not really for my sake, but for Yukino's.

Her elder sister, Sorano, also known as Oracion Seis's Angel, will be making an appearance here. Yukino had assumed that her sister is dead, but I knew better. I don't want to get her hopes up by saying that she is still alive since I do not know for certain if Sorano is still alive. Things had changed the moment I appeared in this world and if Yukino inquired any further, I have no explanations on why I know that her sister is still alive. In the end, I kept quiet about this issue. I speculated that if Yukino assumed that Sorano is dead, Sorano might have the same assumption about Yukino as well. If Sorano knew that Yukino is still alive and on our side, maybe, just maybe, it will be enough to convince Sorano to switch sides and fight for our cause instead. In that case, we can argue for a lighter sentence for her the moment we are done with taking down the Oracion Seis.

Due to this, I spent a few days prior to meeting the allied forces trying to remember as much as possible about the Oracion Seis arc. I tried to remember what had happened in canon and managed to drag out a few memories about this particular timeline. In the end, I picked a point in canon where Sorano first made her appearance to interfere. It is the best possible chance for me to talk to her without any influence from the other Oracion Seis members. Sorano loved Yukino. The fact that she was willing to part with Ophiuchus's key and gave it to Yukino to protect her spoke volumes about it. I'm almost a hundred percent sure that I can convince Sorano to switch sides simply by telling her that Yukino is on our side.

At least that is the plan I concocted in my head. I'm not sure if the plan will survive first contact with the enemy.

We soon arrived at the villa that serves as the meeting point for the representatives of the four guilds. The villa belonged to Master Bob of Blue Pegasus from what Erza had informed us.

It was then the three idiots of Blue Pegasus made their appearance. I am thankful for the fact that Mira isn't here. I'm not sure if I can control my urge to throttle them if they flirted with Mira. The situation escalated when Ichiya made his appearance and a whole slew of misunderstanding ensued regarding his "relationship status" with Erza. I can see Jellal trying very hard to control himself not to bomb the entire place by dropping a meteor from the sky.

Gray tried to diffuse the situation by asking the Blue Pegasus mages politely to keep their hands off our female mages, but he was rudely brushed off by the Blue Pegasus mages. Natsu and Gray immediately challenged the Pegasus idiotic trio to a fight and it looked like chaos would erupt very soon.

Crap, if I let things continue as it is, it will affect the teamwork between the four guilds later on. That is not acceptable, especially when we are going up against Oracion Seis later.

Time to rectify things.

* * *

"That is... an interesting manner of greeting us you have there."

Lyon looked on in half amusement and half bewilderment as several mages, including Gray, were shackled and hanging upside down in the air by some sort of ethereal looking chains. He also spotted Natsu hanging and tied up in the air as well but with a gag over their mouths, together with a few other mages that he hadn't recognise. Lyon guessed that they must be from some other guild, probably Blue Pegasus. This meeting place belongs to them after all.

"Lyon?!"

"Gray." Lyon greeted coolly. "Having a nice time up there?" He poked fun at Gray as he walked up to underneath where Gray is swinging, he's trying very hard to get out of his constraints.

"Dont laugh!" Gray exclaimed." Help to get these chains off me!"

"I don't think it will be nice to spoil your fun." Lyon said as he walked towards the luxurious looking couch at the side of the huge room placed next to a wall, ignoring Gray's cries of protest. Lyon walked up to the four mages and a cat sitting on the couch and leisurely drinking from their tea cups. He recognised the Titania, Lucy and Jellal. The fourth mage is an ordinary looking guy that he would have passed off as an ordinary civilian should he meet him on the streets. Titania is known throughout Fiore as the strongest female mage of Fairy Tail while Jellal is known for the wrong reasons. The truth about his predicament was released to the public through the official channels and it created a widespread sensation. There were as many sympathizers just as there are as many haters. Jellal's predicament also created a temporary craze regarding magics or objects known to help prevent the user from being mind-controlled or possessed. No one likes to be someone else's puppet.

In Lyon's opinion, he is fine with Jellal being here as long as he is on their side. It's not like he's qualified to judge him for his past actions, considering what he tried to do with Deliora.

He held out a hand in greeting towards Erza, who he presumed is the leader of the Fairy Tail delgation.

"Nice to meet you, Titania."

Erza stood up and shook his hand in return.

"Lyon, right? Call me Erza. Gray talked a lot about you. Are you the leader of the delegation from Lamia Scale?"

Lyon gave a light-hearted laugh as he responded.

"No, I am not. I was merely eager to reach the meeting spot early to see if Gray was here as well. The leader of our guild's delegation is someone who is far more qualified and powerful than me."

Just at that exact moment, Jura stepped into the room together with Sherry.

"That's Jura." Lyon heard Jellal informing Lucy about the identity of the leader of their delegation and saw Lucy's eyes widened in amazement.

"He's a member of the Ten Wizard Saints!" Happy chimed in.

The rest of the Fairy Tail delegation stood up in greeting their new arrivals as the black haired mage snapped his fingers. The six captives who were in chains and swinging in the air fell down onto the ground in a messy heap. Lyon looked towards the black-haired mage in surprise and newfound respect. This guy was the one who tied up all six of them? Including Ichiya? That man's personality is more than just a little troublesome to deal with, but Ichiya is a strong and capable mage despite how he carried himself. Lyon suddenly find himself having troubles believing that this ordinary looking guy is the one who managed to restrain even Ichiya.

"Ouch! Hey El! What's the big idea?!" Natsu yelled out as he waved his fists in the air the moment he was freed.

"Is this how Fairy Tail treat their allies?" The dark-skinned mage from Blue Pegasus growled out in rage.

"Oh quit it." The black-haired mage said. "We are here to fight the Oracion Seis and bring them down, not to have petty squabbles among ourselves. If you guys still have a bone to pick with me after we dealt with the problem on hand, you are more than welcome to try me." A huge magical pressure suddenly built up from the black-haired mage and pressed on everyone in the room as even Lyon felt suffocated from the magic released by him. The youngest of the Blue Pegasus mage had even fall onto his knees together with Lucy from the outburst of magic power. As quickly as it had came, the pressure vanished. "Our lovely ladies were obviously uncomfortable with your antics, we tried to stop you by asking nicely, but you didn't listen. What else do you expect me to do?"

Lyon was forced to reassess the unassuming black-haired mage that belonged to Fairy Tail. Since when did Fairy Tail have a mage of this calibre? Who is this guy?!

Jura got everyone's attention back on him by slamming the bottom of his staff onto the floor.

"He is right. We are here to form an alliance and defeat the Oracion Seis. This is no time to be fighting amongst ourselves."

"Jura." Jellal greeted from where he stood beside Erza.

"Sieg... no, Jellal. It has been a while. I'm glad to see that you are alright. My apologies, if only one of us fellow Wizard Saints had spotted the possession on you sooner..."

"It's not anyone's fault but my own and Ultear's." Jellal said as he walked up to Jura. "It's nice to see you again, although I wish it was under better circumstances. Nevertheless, it's an honour to be fighting by your side."

"That it is. It's an honour for me as well to be fighting alongside you." Jura responded amicably as the two former colleagues shook hands with each other. "Do you mind if we have a spar after our battle with Oracion Seis? It's hard to find worthy opponents these days."

"Sure." Jellal responded with a gentle smile on his face before his face turned back into a serious look. "Three of the guilds are now assembled, that means that only the delegation from Cait Shelter is left."

"You say 'delegation'," Ichiya interjected. "But from what I know, they are only sending in a single mage!"

"Ah!"

A cry of hurt sounded out from the entrance of the villa which grabbed everyone's attention.

"Ow..." A blue-haired girl that is only about slightly older than ten years of age got up from the position which she fell onto the floor. "U...Um... I'm sorry I'm so late!" The young girl said hurriedly as she dusted herself. "I'm from Cait Shelter. My name is Wendy. Pleased to be working with you all!"

What?!

Cait Shelter sent in a _child_?!

* * *

So this is Wendy. I would have overlooked her as well if I didn't know about her status as a Dragon Slayer similar to Natsu, Gajeel, and Laxus. She just looks so harmless.

"An offensive endeavour of this scale, and they send us a single child? What do Cait Shelter think they are playing at?!" The female mage from Lamia Scale, who I assumed is Sherry, complained out loud. That's not very nice of her.

"Alone? I think not, you tawdry woman."

A white talking cat made her appearance as she strolled into the room, and I was very amused at seeing Happy's love-at-first-sight reaction. It's very entertaining to watch.

"Jel...Jellal!"

Wendy suddenly exclaimed in both shock and joy when she spotted Jellal. She ran up to him to embrace him in a hug excitedly. "You are back! You are back! Do you know how much I missed you?!"

Needless to say, everyone was shocked at this turn of events. I observed in silence as Wendy mistook Jellal for Mystogan, how will Jellal handle this situation?

"My apologies, Wendy." Jellal spoke slowly as he released himself from Wendy's embrace. "But I believe that this is the first time we have met."

Wendy's crestfallen expression looked as if Jellal had just kicked a downed puppy, and he struggled to find the right words to prevent the girl from crying as he flailed his hands.

"If I may ask, when do you first meet Jellal, Wendy?" I saved Jellal from his predicament by asking the young girl a question. Might as well get this distraction out of the way while we are at it.

"In the year X777. He was the one that brought me to Cait Shelter." Wendy answered as she dabbed away the wetness in her eyes with the back of her hand.

"That can't be right." Jellal replied as his eyebrows furrowed in thought. "At that point in time, I was still under possession and in the Tower of Heaven. I didn't leave that place until I left to join the Magic Council a few years later."

"E-Eh?"

"Whatever person you met, Wendy, that wasn't me." Jellal explained as he knelt down a little to look at Wendy at eye level. "The timeline doesn't match."

"Maybe you had a long lost brother that looked like you?" Gray contributed as his shirt went missing again.

"Not entirely impossible." Jellal admitted. "I don't remember much about my family before I was abducted to the Tower of Heaven. I might have relatives that I don't know about roaming around Fiore. I don't know why the guy that Wendy met used my name though."

"I... I see..." Wendy said as she let the realisation sink in. She quickly bowed her head in apology. "I'm sorry!"

"Don't be." Jellal said as he reassured the girl by putting a hand on her shoulder. "Thanks to you, I now know that I might have a living relative somewhere out there. If you want, we can search for him together after our mission is over. How about it?"

Wendy's face brightened up in joy at Jellal's words and everyone gave a silent sigh of relief. One crisis averted. I don't think anyone here can deal with a crying kid.

"Are you really the only one your guild sent?" Sherry questioned once more.

"U... Um... I... I can't actually fight at all, but... I know lots of support magic that should be useful to you all..." Wendy got back to her timid behaviour as she nervously raised a hand near her mouth subconsciously. Her voice got softer and softer towards the end. "So please don't leave me out completely~~!" She cried out.

This girl needs a serious boost in confidence.

"Honestly." Carla huffed. "It's that timidity of yours that makes people look down on you!"

"Hey, cheer up!" I said jovially as I gave a firm pat on her back. Nothing too painful or hard, but enough to show my support. "I am technically a support mage too given the type of magic I use, we can work together! People often don't give us enough credit for what we do. Don't worry, these punks here will definitely go crying to you for help later, just wait for it." I grinned at her when I said the last part.

Wendy's eyes lit up again. No matter how strong Wendy is for her age, she is still a child just like Yukino.

"I have a younger sister around your age as well." I informed her as I tuned out the rest of the mages that are watching our interaction. "We aren't blood related, but we are close. She doesn't have anyone around her age to play with in the guild, however. Maybe I can bring her to visit you at Cait Shelter sometime later?"

"Really?" Wendy asked. "I would like that very much! Um..."

"My name is Elden Tyrell. Just call me El."

Wendy's jaws dropped as she heard my name. "You are... you are the Aegis of Fairy Tail?!"

"The one and only."

I saw the stares from the other mages from our allied guilds. Team Natsu had a smirk on their faces as they saw their reactions upon hearing my moniker. Do the rest of the mages not know who I was before this?

Oops.

" _You_ are the Aegis." Lyon said as if trying to confirm the news I just dropped onto everyone. "The one who single-handedly stopped a blast from a Jupiter cannon in your guild's war with Phantom Lord."

"Yes, I am." I replied.

"Huh, now that explains how he managed to tie us all up without any effort." Hibiki muttered.

"Putting that aside." Ichiya clapped his hands once and posed in his signature outrageous looking pose. "Since everyone has finally arrived. I shall proceed to the explanation of our strategy!"

* * *

I watched with Jura and "Ichiya" as our entire allied forces rushed out of the villa in enthusiasm the moment our strategy was explained with Natsu leading the charge. I sighed in exasperation. This is why I never go on jobs with Natsu other than that one time which I gave it a go when he first joined the guild. It was the last time I went on a job with him.

He freaking barbequed all the cows at a nearby farm where we had our job. 207 cows, all gone and roasted just like that.

"Dear me." Jura seemed to share my sentiments as he said those words. "It seems the time has come to put this strategy into action. Let us move out as well."

"Just before we do that, Jura-san..."

I tuned out "Ichiya's" words as he tried to inquire about Jura's real strength and status as a Wizard Saint. I remembered how Jura was injured in canon, the same thing is probably going to happen right now. I discreetly prepared my transparent barriers as I made a dome of them surrounding me that is able to filter the air passing through it. Wakaba was my foster guardian for a few months when I first joined the guild. My experience in training with Wakaba's Smoke Magic when I was younger had let me learn how to filter contaminated air into clean ones with my barriers. Ichiya's Perfume Magic would not work on me. Even if it did, it will not work as well as it originally did.

I watched as "Ichiya" popped open the cap of a bottle that contains a perfume with the ability to remove the opponent's ability to fight and I faked the impression that I had succumbed to it as well. I watched as "Ichiya" whipped out a dagger and lunged at Jura.

Jura won't come to any harm here, not on my watch.

* * *

Jura tried to avoid the dagger that Ichiya tried to stab him with but found his own movements sluggish and unresponsive. What's happening?! What is the meaning of this?!

Jura braced himself for the stab that he will no doubt experience. To his surprise, the dagger was stopped a few centimeters away from where it was supposed to plunge into his body. What's going on?

Jura quickly took a few clumsy steps backwards, he is having trouble trying to access his magic after inhaling Ichiya's perfume. He looked back to Elden, also known as the Aegis of Fairy Tail. Amazingly enough, the Fairy Tail mage seemed unaffected as he got up from the ground where he previously lay.

Something invisible pierced through Ichiya's body the moment Elden pointed a finger at him. Ichiya was revealed to be two small little...things. What are they?!

"So it's really Celestial Spirits, huh? That means..." Elden muttered to himself before calling out. "Come out, I know you are here, Oracion Seis. I boxed the entire villa with my barriers. The only way to get out of here is to defeat me."

A slow clap sounded across the hallway as a scantily-clad women with white hair and clothed in an elegant white dress with feathers appeared. Jura clenched his teeth as he assessed the situation. This woman is Angel! Oracion Seis had already made their move?!

"Good job at spotting the disguise. Tell me, how did you know that Ichiya was Gemini?" Angel asked Elden. Jura's attention was also focused on Elden, he is equally curious. How did Elden spot the fake Ichiya even when he, a member of the Ten Wizard Saints, is unable to?

"Similar to how I know that Jellal is being possessed." El replied vaguely as his eyes suddenly had a very sharp look to it and he walked to stand in front of Jura. "I never wish for our first meeting to be done in this way, _Sorano_. That's your real name, am I right?"

Jura's mind spun from another revelation that day. Elden knew the identity of a member of the Oracion Seis? Why didn't he speak up during the strategy meeting then?!

Oh right, that Ichiya was a fake. Jura shook his head in an effort to try and dismiss the effects of Ichiya's perfume. The perfume seemed to have an effect on his mind as well. His mind is not as sharp as it usually is.

"Jura-san." Jura looked back up at Elden when he called upon his name. "Can you go after the rest? I'm afraid our plans have been leaked to the enemy. The entire allied force is probably heading towards an ambush, someone needs to warn them. Ichiya is down and we don't know if he is still alive. I will stop the enemy here. I have something personal to settle with her as well." Elden glanced back at Jura and Jura came to a decision on the spot. This is probably the best possible arrangement. He is still weak from the effects of Ichiya's Perfume Magic and won't be of any use in a fight for now against a member of the Oracion Seis. He have to leave this to Elden and wait for his body to recover from the effects of the magic perfume.

"Make sure you win. I will ensure the safety of our comrades."

"Thank you."

El shot Jura a reassuring smile just as a barrier formed underneath Jura's feet and lifted him into the air and out of the villa. A small opening in the barrier around the villa revealed itself to let Jura through and closed immediately after. The platform of barrier disappeared the moment Jura was outside the villa, and the Wizard Saint hastened his pace to catch up with the rest of their forces.

He hoped that he isn't too late.

* * *

Angel trembled in rage at the mention of her real name. _How_?! **HOW** did this nobody know about her real name?! No one other than her fellow guild mates know about it!

She ignored Jura as he was sent out of the villa. To hell with Brain's plans, she had completed her job and relayed to them the information she had procured. She is not in a hurry to rejoin them, she have a bigger fish to fry here.

"How." Angel growled out. "How did you know about my name?! My real name!"

"You do look a lot like Yukino, you know that? She never stopped thinking about you, even when she thought that you were dead. I thought that there was a slight chance that you may be still alive since your body wasn't found according to the records I borrowed from the Rune Knights. I made an educated guess about your identity the moment I saw your photo Hibiki showed us during the strategy meeting earlier." The black-haired mage shrugged as he answered her question. Angel's mind came to an abrupt halt at the revelation.

Yukino?! Her little sister Yukino?! Wasn't she dead? Their entire village was massacred!

The black-haired mage ignored her shell-shocked expression as he requipped a photograph into his hand and sent it floating to her with his magic. Angel made a grab for it. She saw five people in the photograph including the black-haired mage. The other four people in the photograph had white hair. She spotted Mirajane, who is a well-known model and Fairy Tail's S Class mage that sometimes appear on the Sorcerer. She recognised Elfman as well, who is an accomplished Take Over mage even if his skills are still a little lacking according to her information sources. There was another white-haired girl that looked a lot like Mirajane, only that her hair is a lot shorter.

The last girl is the youngest member in the photograph and stood in the middle of the group. The four older mages stood behind her as they posed for the photo with smiles on their faces. Angel felt her tears leaked out of her eyes and let it fell on the photograph. There is no mistaking the youngest member in the photo.

Her sister is alive. _Yukino is alive!_

"That photograph was taken about a month or two ago when we finally formed a team. We are called the Monster Legion." El continued speaking. "I found her four years ago in the middle of nowhere in some unnamed woods. She was dressed in rags and clutching onto Ophiuchus's key like a lifeline. She formed a contract with Ophiuchus, if you were wondering, and she is also a Celestial Spirit mage like you. Despite her age, she has three golden zodiac keys in her possession and is capable enough to summon even a combat spirit like Leo in battle. She is strong."

Angel is now reduced into a sobbing mess as she brought the photograph close to her chest. She had lost all hope in life when she assumed that Yukino was dead. Her sister was the only light in her life. It was why she agreed to Brain's plans and joined him in his quest to snuff out the light. It was for revenge. Revenge against the light. The light didn't protect her and her sister when they needed it the most, so why should she fight for them? Using Nirvana to end them sounded like a perfect way to destroy the light.

But not anymore. The light in her life had returned.

Yukino is alive.

There were many things that Angel wanted to ask Elden, but no words came out from her opened mouth. How is Yukino? Is she sleeping well? Did she get sick as often as she did when she was younger? Does she still have nightmares?

"Is she... well?"

El's face softened at the question. "She is. Mira and I adopted her as our younger sister, so now she has another four older siblings on top of you. You can go and visit her once this is over. She will be overjoyed to see you."

Angel cried out even louder as she sank into the floor on her knees and bawled her eyes out as her leaned over the floor with only her arms as support. Gemini tried to comfort her by placing their short arms on her arm and pat it comfortingly. Angel cried even louder.

"How... How am I supposed to face her now?!" Angel screamed out as she bashed her fists onto the floor below. "I...I..!"

"If you need an example, look at Jellal." El replied. "He's perfectly normal now, isn't he? If you decide to help us against Oracion Seis, I can help to vouch for you to argue for a lighter sentence. I'm sure that the rest of my guild mates will do the same. Assuming you didn't kill Ichiya off, I'm pretty sure he can be convinced to do the same as well so long as you made a sincere apology to him. I can try to let Jura vouch for you as well. However, we can only argue for your case only if you help us."

Angel rubbed away her tears and stood back up with determination in her eyes. Now that she knows that Yukino is still alive, she has no reason to stay in Oracion Seis any longer to complete their plans. There is no longer a need to avenge Yukino. Furthermore, Yukino had joined a light guild, and Oracion Seis's goal in releasing Nirvana will put her sister in mortal danger given the nature of the magic of Nirvana and what Oracion Seis intend to do with it.

She will never allow that to happen. Angel was too weak to prevent their separation when they were younger, but she is no longer the powerless and helpless little girl.

This time, she will protect Yukino.

"I will help you defeat the Oracion Seis." Angel said. "I will do anything for Yukino, nothing else matters as long as she is safe and happy."

El held out a hand, which Angel took and the both of them agreed on their new alliance with a handshake.

"I guess we are similar in that regard then. The Monster Legion will do anything for our little sister as well. Hey, if you are pardoned for your crimes, do you want to come to Fairy Tail and join our team? We can always use another member."

Angel sputtered at the sudden change in topic. What the hell?!

"I only just agreed to help take down Oracion Seis and you are already doing a recruitment talk?!" Goodness! Angel cannot believe what this guy is spouting. "And who knows if I will even get out of this alive! The Magic Council will not be lenient with my punishment! I killed innocents! I will be lucky if I get off the hook without a death sentence!"

"There's no doubt that you will have to serve your rightful punishment." El commented as he gave another shrug. Angel's fingers twitched in annoyance at that irritating gesture. "But there's always hope. If you are truly remorseful for what you did, then Fairy Tail will support you every step along the way."

A platform of barrier rose up from beneath them and carried both mages out of the villa. Angel was caught unaware and fell on her back.

"Hey!"

"Oops. Sorry, Angel. But time is of the essence and we cannot argue for your case if any of our allied forces died due to your intervention." Another barrier floated up to them as they sped across the forest through the air, carrying the unconscious body of Ichiya.

"Thank Mavis, this annoying dude is alive." El commented as he brought Ichiya's unconscious form closer to him and checked his injuries.

"I didn't kill him. It wasn't worth it." Angel said as she crossed her arms and sat on the barrier with her legs crossed as well in a very uncharacteristically unladylike manner that is not usually seen from her. Gemini sat in her lap as they looked up to her in concern.

"Thank you, Angel."

"Sorano." Angel whispered out as her words caught El's attention. "Call me Sorano." Sorano spoke louder with determination, determined to change her identity and thereby implying the side of the battle which she stands on.

"We still have a little bit of time before we finally catch up to the rest of the group." El mused. "Why not we share about the things that Yukino did as a kid? The weird ones, funny ones, even the embarrassing ones. It will be fun, wouldn't it? What do you say, Sorano?"

Sorano nodded in agreement. She really missed Yukino. She would like to hear what she had missed out on after they were separated.

"Well." El continued to speak as they flew through the air at breakneck speeds with his barriers. "There was this incident when Yukino finally managed to summon Ophiuchus to form a contract with him. Somehow..."

Sorano let a small smile grow on her face as her heart warmed at the story El was telling her. As much as she loathes to admit it, it felt good to be part of the light again. She still doesn't have a nice impression of the light given the lack of help they had provided for her and Yukino when they needed it the most, but that sentiment is ultimately insignificant when compared to the well-being of her younger sister.

 _Yukino, this time, onee-chan will protect you._ Sorano decided with unwavering purpose as she tried to fully absorb whatever El is telling her about what Yukino did when she was younger.

 _Onee-chan will not let anyone hurt you again._

* * *

 **AN: Here is an update, which is only possible as my country is celebrating the Chinese New Year soon and that gives me some time to write and go through the chapter.**

 **Hoped you enjoyed this chapter, and a happy Chinese New Year to everyone!**


	14. Chapter 14- Protect The Light

Things have gone bad.

Really bad.

Maybe it would have been a better option to come clean with the rest of the allied forces that he knew where the exact location of where Nirvana was, but it's too late for any regrets now.

The allied forces had gotten themselves utterly decimated by five, no, three members of the Oracion Seis. The leader, Brain is just watching impassively while Midnight is just sleeping on a magic carpet. Jellal idly thought that it would be interesting to have a sleeping competition between Midnight and Elden, but he filed those thoughts away for later.

Right now he have to fight to save the lives of his comrades.

The Oracion Seis have taken out every member of the allied forces save Erza and himself in a matter of minutes, but Cobra's poisonous snake had bitten Erza on the arm and she fell quickly thereafter. According to Brain, Angel had sneaked into their meeting point at the villa and had supposedly taken out Jura, Ichiya, and Elden.

He is the only one left now.

Currently the speed granted to him through Meteor is the only saving grace that allowed him to fight against the three members of the Oracion Seis. If Brain and Midnight decides to join in...

"Come on, Jellal! We know you have information on where Nirvana is!" Cobra taunted as he and his snake lunged, trying to poison him the same way they had gotten Erza. "Tell us! Let us hear it!"

"Time is money and time's a wasting! Stop wasting our time and lead us to Nirvana already!" Hoteye yelled out as he liquefied the ground and tried to box Jellal in.

"We prefer to finish our job as quickly as possible, so help us out a little here, yea?" Racer said as he tried to catch up to Jellal with his speed.

Jellal said nothing as he employed the use of Darkness Magic and launched tendrils of it to force the members of the Oracion Seis to back off away from him. It is not a form of magic he enjoyed using now that he is part of the light, but in this case it is necessary since the usage of the other spells with his Heavenly Body Magic may cause his fallen allies to get caught up in it as well.

"Oh, ya scared of your friends getting hurt? Well then, try to stop this!" Cobra mocked as he suddenly changed direction and dashed towards a huge boulder where a blue-haired girl was hiding from their battle.

 _Wendy!_

"Get your hands off her!" Jellal roared as he flew after Cobra and try to intercept him. This guy is doing exactly what he just feared!

Just when Jellal thought that Cobra would have sink his fangs into Wendy, a wall of rocks rose from the ground, blocking Cobra's path.

"What?! Impossible!"

"Iron Rock Fist!"

A large arm made of rock emerged from the ground not far from Cobra and sent him spiraling into the air with a mighty blow, Jellal took the chance to regroup and quickly picked up the fallen alliance members with his enhanced speed and placed them behind the rock wall.

Jura doesn't seem to be feeling very well if the cold sweat on his forehead is any indication, even if he doesn't have any physical wounds on his body.

"Jura?! What happened to Ichiya and Elden?!"

"Ichiya-dono had fallen prey to Angel! She had infiltrated into our strategy meeting posing as Ichiya with her Celestial Spirit and is somehow able to read his mind and use the same magic as him. She is a Celestial Spirit mage! Elden-dono is engaged with her in combat as we speak! I rushed here to inform the group not to carry on ahead since our plans were already leaked to Oracion Seis, but I guess I was still too late." Jura turned to Wendy. "Are you alright?"

"Y-Yes! Thank you for the save, Jura-san!"

It was then Erza began to moan in pain, grabbing their brief attention.

"Shit. I think Erza got poisoned by Cobra's pet snake. We need to get the poison out." Jellal cast Erza a worried glance as he eyed Oracion Seis warily and sent a heated glare at Cobra, who is wearing a smug look on his face. Wendy immediately went to check on Erza's condition, prompting a laugh from Cobra.

"Heh, I wouldn't bother if I were you. She doesn't have long to live now that Cubellios's poison is running its course. Tell us where Nirvana is and we may consider sparing her life."

Jura looked at Jellal with an incredulous look on his face. "You know where Nirvana is all along?!"

Jellal grimaced. "It wasn't like I didn't trust any of you, I just thought it would be safer if no one knew about it. Our mission was to destroy Oracion Seis, not Nirvana, so I don't want to blurt such sensitive information out until we really need it."

"Considering that our meeting was infiltrated, I'm glad you didn't tell us." Jura commented.

Both sides continued to stare at each other as they now found themselves in a deadlock. Oracion Seis have no wish to face two mages of the Wizard Saint calibre even with five of their members around, while the vice versa applies to the light alliance. Jellal's thoughts wandered to that specific tree that he knew where Nirvana was hidden, he have to make sure that no one, especially Oracion Seis, goes near it. Maybe a little bit of misdirection can help? He can maybe try to barter for the antidote to Erza's poison with a fake location, it might get them out of their predicament. He will have to destroy Nirvana later discretely when they are out of their way, he know a few spells that are able to do so.

Cobra suddenly sported a maniac grin on his face and both Jura and Jellal tensed at his reaction.

"I heard it! I heard it! I know where Nirvana is now!" Cobra laughed like a maniac on the spot as he pointed a finger at Jellal. "You think you can outsmart us by giving us a fake location in exchange for the antidote?! I can hear your thoughts! Nothing escapes my hearing!"

"Good job, Cobra." Brain complimented the poison user as he charged up a massive power of Darkness Magic, which swirls in a vortex above their group. "Finally, our dream can be achieved! I thank you for your contribution, Jellal! Dark Rondo!"

With a shout, the dark vortex unleashed itself as a widespread attack that bombard the entire light alliance, Jura raised his index and middle finger up in the air as large rock formations rose from the ground to shield the group from the sudden attack.

By the time the cloud of dust that was kicked up by Brain's attack subsided, the entire Oracion Seis were gone.

"Damn it! They have a mind reader!" Jellal hissed out as he stomped one of his foot in frustration.

"It isn't your fault, Jellal, no one could have expected that. What we need to do right now is to stop them before they can release Nirvana and treat Erza-dono's poison. We need an antidote."

"Uh-Uhm..." Wendy cut in as she raised a timid hand halfway into the air. "About that... I-I think I can help out... I inspected the poison injected into Erza-san's body, I'm confident that I can treat it with my magic."

"Really?" Jellal whispered out as both he and Jura looked at Wendy in a new light. Healing magic are rare to come by.

"Uh..."

"Wendy is the Sky Dragon Slayer. A snake bite is no problem for her." Carla cut in on behalf of the timid girl. "It's our best bet now, unless you want to go chasing after the snake guy who may or may not have the antidote to your girlfriend."

Jellal visibly blushed at those words. "We are not in that kind of relationship!" He exclaimed before taking a deep breath and turning back to Wendy. "I'm sorry for doubting you, Wendy, but please, save Erza."

"I-I will try my best!"

* * *

"What's **_she_** doing here?!"

Sherry pointed an accusing finger at Sorano as the rest of the allied forces visibly tensed upon my introduction of our new ally the moment I regrouped with them.

"Whoa, whoa, hold your horses." I stood in their way and held my hands up in a placating manner to try and diffuse the situation. "Her _name_ is Sorano and she is on our side now. I don't think I need to elaborate further on her strength, besides, she have valuable information on Oracion Seis."

"Men. As long as she help us in our cause, I don't see why we cannot include her in our plans." Ichiya spoke up while still covered in bandages. "If even I don't have an issue with it, I don't see why any of you are complaining."

"And HOW are we going to know that she won't stab us in the back the moment we let our guard down?" Sherry argued.

"Because her younger sister is now a member of our guild. Going through Oracion Seis's plans would mean putting her sister's life in danger and that is one thing that Sorano here will never do even if it kills her." I interjected. "I will guarantee her loyalty." I spoke as I walked up to the group and stared down Sherry in the eye. She flinched. "If she ever do something that endanger our lives with malicious intent, you can have my head."

"Oi, El. That's too much." Gray spoke up as he looked slightly horrified by my proclamation. "We barely know a thing about her."

"She's Yukino's older sister. That's enough for me." I replied.

.

.

.

" _ **WHAT**_?!"

"Come on, you guys really can't see the resemblance?"

"That does explain the smell." Natsu said as he sniffed the air in Sorano's direction. "No wonder she smelt familiar."

"Are you a dog?!" Gray exclaimed comically.

"Now that you mentioned it, they look alike too, especially the hair." Lucy commented as she hid herself behind Natsu, still afraid of said dark mage. She obviously still have trust issues with Sorano. I can't blame her, Sorano's track record isn't stellar.

"I know there are very few here that trust me, with good reason too." Sorano said as she walked into the center of the group. "I am a dark mage and I have killed innocents." Her eyes wandered over to the members of Blue Pegasus. "If my life is enough compensation to allow you to trust me, then you can claim it after this is all over. I just want to protect my little sister this time, with my own hands, regardless of the cost." Sorano raised Aries's key for all to see. "I did kill Karen after all. An eye for an eye. It's only fair to offer up my life as recompense for the people I killed."

"You-!"

The members from Blue Pegasus visibly tensed as their magic swirled around them dangerously. The rest of the alliance seemed to be taken aback by this news as well, no one expected for Sorano's previous deeds to hit so close to home.

"You killed Karen."

Hibiki stated darkly as he walked up to face Karen, eyes clouded with rage.

"I did." Sorano stated matter-of-factly. She held her head high, baring her neck to him. "If you want to kill me, then do it quickly."

Hibiki's hand shook as he slowly raised it into the air. His entire body trembled as he prepared to deal the killing blow.

"Enough."

Ichiya grabbed onto Hibiki's arm, jerking him out of his rage-induced behaviour. "She will pay for her crimes for killing one of our comrades but none of us here have the right to judge her. If we kill her now in cold blood, we are no better than dark mages. We will turn her in to the Magic Council once our work here is done, they will be the ones to pass the judgement onto her."

Hibiki said nothing as he continued to glare at Sorano. Ichiya took his silence as a form of approval and turned to talk to Sorano.

"Now, Angel of Oracion Seis, what can you tell us about your guild?"

* * *

"Ah, so you have woken up."

Wendy massaged her head as she tried to sit up groggily. She had overexerted herself in getting rid of the poison in Erza's body. Where is she now?

"Wendy!" Carla rushed up to her and began to fuss over her. "I told you not to overexert yourself! Look at you! Goodness!"

"I'm fine, Carla." Wendy said as she gave her friend a smile. Wendy took a quick look around. Her surroundings looked unfamiliar. "Where are we?"

"On the way to destroy Oracion Seis once and for all." Elden said as he sat down beside her without a care in the world with the wind brushing across their faces. She looked downwards and saw themselves somehow levitated high up in the air and moving towards a specific direction at high speed.

Wait a minute.

"EEEEKKK!"

"Relax." Elden grabbed onto the panicked girl to prevent her from falling off. "We are flying with my magic. You won't fall if you stay close to me."

"O-Oh." Wendy mumbled out as she clung onto Elden for dear life. She had flew with Carla before so she isn't afraid of heights, but the shock of finding herself suddenly in the air the moment she woke up took over her sense of logic temporarily.

Elden let out a laugh as he patted Wendy's head with his hand, which made Wendy felt a little warm on the inside. It was her Jellal did often in their short time together before he left her at Cait Shelter. While her guild mates from Cait Shelter cared about her, most of them were much older than her. Wendy had always secretly wished for an older brother to look up to, like the Jellal that brought her to Cait Shelter. She came here initially in hopes of meeting Natsu, a Dragon Slayer like her, with the hopes that he might have information on Grandeeney and _maybe_ , with a very _slight_ possibility that they could be some sort of family due to their connections with dragons, that maybe Natsu can fill the role of being an older brother figure to her. However, he seemed more interested in bashing people's heads in than talking to her. Wendy was brought out of her musing when she saw Elden turning his head to the right before shouting out.

"Jellal! How long more until we reach the tree? Natsu! Smell anyone yet?"

"I think we are close!" Jellal replied. "It should be somewhere around here!"

Natsu sniffed the air once more before yelling out. "I can smell them! They are in this area!"

"Good." Jura said as he slammed the bottom of his staff onto the platform of barrier Elden is using to transport their entire group. "Since now we know our enemy's capabilities and Nirvana's true nature, there's no need to hold our hand any longer. The entire magical world is at stake. We have to win this." This speech earned Jura several shouts of approval from the group. "Remember what we discussed earlier. Stick to your assigned groups and prevent the release of Nirvana at all cost!"

"Aye sir!" Happy replied on behalf of the alliance.

"Groups?" Wendy asked aloud, confused about the arrangement.

"You are grouped with me. So don't worry too much about it. No one will get to you with me around." Elden said reassuringly.

"Below us!" Erza cried out as various magical attacks shot out from the ground below. However, before the attacks can reach them, they are intercepted by numerous translucent panes of rectangular barriers forming below the one they are using as their makeshift transport.

"Ignore them." Wendy heard Elden as he continued to drive forward. "Their attacks won't even leave a scratch on my barriers if this is all they are capable of. Nirvana takes precedence. We don't have time to deal with the minions right now."

"Those are pretty solid defense." Wendy heard Eve praising Elden and she can't help but find herself agreeing with Eve. She had never seen such defensive powers before. In fact, this is the first time she saw Barrier Magic, she didn't even know such magic existed previously.

A pillar of black light shot up into the sky not far from where they currently are, startling the entire group.

"Shit! Are we too late?!" Hibiki exclaimed as he called upon his Archive, trying to find more information with his magic.

"Remember what we learnt about Nirvana! Purge all negative thoughts away from your mind! Don't allow yourself to descend into the darkness!" Jura immediately shouted out to remind the alliance about Nirvana's influence.

"Yeah, you do well to remember that."

Wendy's eyes widened in shock as Racer appeared out of nowhere and aimed a kick straight at Elden but he somehow managed to raise a small barrier in time to block it.

"Not bad." Racer applauded as he jumped back up into the air. "But can you stop this?"

Numerous objects suddenly appeared in the air around the alliance and the mages panicked upon identifying what those objects really are.

"Watch out! Lacrima bombs!"

Not just any lacrima bombs that miners use, but war-grade lacrima bombs that is created for the sole purpose of causing death and destruction. On top of that, there are many of these bombs that surrounded their group in midair.

There is no escape.

With a determined shout, Elden quickly enclosed the entire alliance in a sphere of barriers and managed to shield the group from harm just right before the bombs went off. The barriers held, but the impact from the resulting explosions caused the sphere that the group is in to get knocked around erratically and the smoke obscured their vision.

"Our group is too big a target in the air and we cannot counterattack effectively! I cannot protect everyone like this forever! I'm doing an emergency landing! We need to lose Racer!"

The entire alliance plummeted down into the ground as Elden quickly swerved the sphere downwards. Racer somehow managed to chase after them in midair and kept up with his assault, trying to attack members of the alliance which was thwarted by Elden's barriers raising themselves in time to block his every move.

The entire group crash-landed roughly onto the ground a few seconds later but otherwise unharmed. A huge wall of ice separated Racer from the alliance, courtesy of Gray.

"Go! Stop Nirvana! Lyon and I can handle things here!"

"Everyone scatter! Split up into your groups! Leave Racer to Lyon's group! Remember our mission!" Jura shouted out as the alliance quickly broke up into various small groups and scattered into the woods towards the pillar of black light.

"Oh no you don't! Motor!" Racer yelled out as he tried to prevent the alliance from interfering with their plans.

"Ice-make: Rampart!"

Another huge wall of ice forced Racer to back off lest he found himself crashing painfully into it. Racer glared at Gray, who is now backed up by Lyon, Sherry, and Ren.

"Twice." Race said as he fixed a menacing glare at Gray. "That's twice you have stopped me in my tracks."

"I'll stop you as many times as I have to." Gray stated simply as he put one of his fist upon his palm. "Ice can stop _anything_ , even life, in its tracks."

"That's right." Lyon said as he walked up to stand beside Gray, his shirt had somehow disappeared. He took on the same stance as Gray as the air around them dropped in temperature at a rapid rate.

"Lyon. You are... using both hands?"

"That's how Ur taught us to do it, right?"

Gray smiled as he took off his shirt as well. Both disciples of Ur stood side by side as they face Racer.

"Sherry, Ren, I need you guys to stand back and provide support. We need to determine the depths of this guy's abilities." Lyon said as he eyed the two of them.

"Don't worry about us. We will provide support whenever we can." Ren assured him. "I will protect Sherry, so focus on your battle."

"You guys should worry about yourselves first." Racer interrupted them as he raised an arm into the air. "You might not even live to see the fall of the light."

"Dead Grand Prix..."

" **Ice-make:...** "

"Begin!/ Eagle!/ Lance!"

* * *

"Why are we doing this again?"

Carla complained as we made our way stealthily backwards towards where we flew from originally in the air. Sorano, Hibiki, Wendy, and I are currently floating a few centimeters off the ground with a sphere of barrier encasing us, making us invisible and muffling the sounds we made.

"Jura said that our job is to take out as many of the minions as possible so that the rest can handle the big shots without being hindered." I reply coolly. "We are the quick response team AND HQ AND support. We left all of those minions behind while flying here and they are probably going to come at us from the back as one big group. We need to take them out for the sake of our allies. There's also the fact that Zero cannot wake up as long as Sorano is with us and remains undefeated. So the best course of action to defeat him will be to take Sorano as far away as possible from the main bulk of the fighting."

"So basically because of that we are stuck with doing all the grunt work that no one else wants to do." Carla huffed as she crossed her arms.

"Yep."

"I-I don't mind. I'm not suited for combat." Wendy piped up.

"Me neither. I'm fine with being in charge of the communications and stuffs, but that means the only one capable of defending our group is you, and _her_." Hibiki said in a venomous tone towards the end.

"Yes, me." Sorano stated dryly.

"Quit your arguing, both of you." I interjected. "Remember our mission and clear your heads of negative thoughts. I don't want to knock out a fellow ally due to Nirvana's influence."

Hibiki said nothing else as one of his Archive screen started beeping.

"Incoming! About 40 people! There are more behind them!" Hibiki exclaimed as his screens showed numerous red dots that is converging onto our location.

"They must be the bunch of dark guilds under Oracion Seis! How are we going to take all of them out!" Carla grabbed onto her head with her paws in frustration.

"Meh. Pretty simple actually." I stated nonchalantly as I analysed the situation by watching the screen Hibiki brought up. "They are clustered in one spot, it makes things a lot easier."

"Are you crazy?! How is this easier?!"

"No, I'm not crazy. You need to have more confidence in your allies, cat." I rebuked and held an opened palm towards where the bunch of dark mages are supposedly coming from. "Hey Hibiki, you mind telling me when they are within 30 meters of us?"

Hibiki stared at his screen for a short while before counting down.

"Targets will be reaching 30 meters in 3, 2, 1... now!"

"Shinra Tensei!"

I blasted a huge curved wall of transparent barrier outwards in a semicircle which immediately flattened and pushed everything away in their path at high velocity. A large clearing soon appeared in front of us along with the unconscious bodies of the dark mages Hibiki had detected with his magic.

"Ah, doing grunt work isn't so bad after all. This is pretty therapeutic." I let out a sigh of happiness as I stretched my arms outwards within the confines of the sphere of barriers around us.

"How is flattening everything around us therapeutic?!"

"Geez, no need to be so uptight about everything, cat." I waved Carla off casually. "I'm already pretty tame for a Fairy Tail Wizard. If it were Natsu, half of the forest would be on flames right now."

"You mean that?"

Everyone's gaze followed Sorano's outstretched finger as we looked to where she was pointing. A huge fire can be seen far away somewhere near the pillar of darkness.

"Huh, I'm surprised the forest fire this time is so small. Considering he destroys historical monuments or the likes of it on almost every mission, he is surprisingly in control of himself this time. This fire is like a candle compared to the inferno he usually belched out."

"You mean he usually create bigger fires?!" Even Hibiki looked a little queasy at this thought while I tried my best not to laugh. Messing around with them is just so fun. If I'm stuck doing grunt work, might as well have some fun while doing it.

"If no one is there to stop him, yeah. But since Lucy is with him, he might reign in his powers a _little_ bit. I heard the first time they met each other Natsu accidentally destroyed the entire port in Hargeon." I paused for dramatic effect, letting their imagination fill in the blanks by themselves. "Why else do you think the council is so hard on us? The best record we have so far is Gildarts, our Ace, obliterating an entire mountain because he happened to trip on a stone and fell while climbing it." I might have exaggerated the Hargeon incident a bit there, and I think Lucy was the one who destroyed it thanks to Aquarius if my memory serves me right, but the group don't need to know that. I wasn't exaggerating about Gildarts though, in fact, I was downplaying it.

He destroyed another two mountains, not just one. Master had a fit over it.

"You Fairy Tail wizards are crazy." Carla summarised everyone's thoughts with just one sentence. "How can anyone accidentally destroy an entire port?! Or a mountain?!"

"I heard about the port being destroyed a few months ago. That was Fairy Tail's doing?"

"Bingo!" I clapped my hands once a little too gleefully. "Property damage is what our guild is best at after all! We do it free of charge too! Natsu is the best at it though, I think it might be a Dragon Slayer thing considering how destructive the nature of the magic he use. What do you think, Wendy?" I purposely gave Wendy a sideway glance to provoke a reaction out of her, whose mouth is already wide open from imagining all the destruction I implied that she might cause in the future.

As if to accentuate my sentence, the forest fire exploded in a huge inferno that left an earth-shattering boom in its wake.

Talk about perfect timing.

Wendy looked absolutely mortified as her face turned as pale as sheet.

"Y-You mean i-if I ever master my Dragon Slayer powers, this is what I will be doing on a regular basis?" The poor girl slid down onto her knees and something flew out of her mouth as she laid limply on the bottom of my spherical barrier. Wait, is that her soul?!

"Wendy!" Carla looked equally horrified as she snatched the thing floating out of Wendy's mouth and stuffed it back before clamping Wendy's mouth shut with an audible click. "Snap out of it!"

"I think you broke her." Hibiki stated.

I _might_ have gone a little too far with the joke there.

No regrets though.


	15. Chapter 15- A Future To Plan For

Surprisingly, the fights so far were rather anticlimactic.

I was constantly expecting for things to go absolutely wrong as our little group of four humans and one cat went about destroying any Oracion Seis's minions we can find. It got to the point that I became extremely twitchy and I think I spooked out my group with my paranoid behaviour.

I mean, this is Team Natsu we are talking about. They always get into the shittiest of situations without even trying. I think I am absolutely justified in thinking that things will turn out badly.

"What is that?!"

Crap, I just have to jinx it, didn't I? But at least it proved to me once again that any missions that Team Natsu went on will eventually go to shit and I am totally justified in thinking that way.

Our group watched as the ancient Nirvit city came to life and rose from the ground after centuries of slumber. The construct stood tall and towered over even the humongous trees that made up this dense forest.

"It's making its way towards somewhere." Hibiki stated his observation as he tried to calculate the possible places that Nirvana is heading towards with his magic.

"Sorano, do you have any clue?"

"Brain didn't share with us the rest of the plan beyond awakening Nirvana so, no, I don't know what he is planning next."

"Cait Shelter..." Carla whispered out with widened eyes. "At the direction it is going, Nirvana will be making its way towards our guild!"

"Carla's right." Hibiki confirmed her suspicion as he stopped typing furiously onto the virtual keyboard hovering near him. "The only place in Nirvana's way is Cait Shelter, assuming it's not changing its directions."

"But why?!" Wendy cried out. "Why will they want to destroy our guild?!"

I can't really remember whether Nirvana did destroy Cait Shelter in canon, but it would look bad on the alliance if we failed to stop its march of destruction even if the only person at the isolated guild right now is a ghost. We cannot have the public doubting the strength of the legal guilds, it will be bad for our reputation.

"I will buy some time to stop Nirvana. Hibiki, do your best to dig through the Archives and find a way to stop it. Sorano, I'm leaving them in your care."

Ignoring their words, I flew into the air and floated in front of Nirvana. The previous battles with Phantom Lord, in the Tower of Heaven and with Laxus was a painful slap in the face that I really need to get a lot more stronger and I need to do it fast. There are many more monsters out there in this world that might or will come after Fairy Tail in the future even if I cannot fully remember the details. Our opponents will only get more dangerous.

I'm not sure if my presence had made the world a better place for my ragtag family, but at the very least I don't want to make it worse.

After experiencing the Battle of Fairy Tail, Mira seemed to found a drive to get stronger as well. Shortly after the Fantasia Parade, the both of us set up a training regime for ourselves. Mira can only train in the early mornings and late nights before and after her work while I have more time on my hands since I can pick when I want to go on missions. There wasn't much time I have available for training in the time period after the Fantasia Parade and before coming here, but I did see some slight improvements in my magic. Nothing too obvious, but the speed at which I created the barriers, their durability, size have all been fine-tuned somewhat even though I knew that I could do a lot more better than this with more training. There's a technique that I have been trying to create but I still haven't managed to do so since that technique goes against the very nature of Barrier-Make itself. I will need to get back on it as soon as possible when I returned to Magnolia.

After we put this ancient weapon down for good, that is.

* * *

Wendy was amazed at how Elden stopped Nirvana and she knew that the rest of their group shared the same sentiment as well. She knew that Elden is an S Class mage of one of the strongest guild in Fiore so he must be strong, but to create something like _that_ is unfathomable. He wasn't wrong when he told her that his magic is categorised as support magic, similar to her enchantments, if they have to classify it strictly based on its properties. A magic that is made to defend and not to attack should logically be classified as support magic no matter how you look at it since all you can do is defend, but to exploit its defensive properties to create something with so much offensive power is something that should not be possible.

Elden had defied all logic and made S Class with support magic.

Can she achieve something similar one day with her enchantments? Can she create a powerful offensive technique based on support type magic alone?

"This... This is beyond even my calculations." Hibiki muttered as he stared at the titans who is now clashing with each other.

"Even Gemini won't be able to duplicate something of this scale." Sorano admitted.

The huge ethereal warrior construct with approximately the same size as Nirvana that Elden is now within used the swords on its four arms to slash at the moving ancient city. However, not even a dent was made on Nirvana.

Seeing that Nirvana's physical body is at least as hard as, if not even harder than his own, the ethereal warrior dispersed its blades into thin air and it suddenly crouched down and charged at Nirvana. The warrior got under the belly of the moving city and used its four hands to _lift_ Nirvana up, even if it struggled to do so. The warrior then threw Nirvana backwards and away from itself and Wendy finally realised what Elden was trying to do.

Elden is trying to stop Nirvana by flipping it on its back. Like how a tortoise will have trouble getting up after falling backwards on the top of its shell, Elden is trying to flip Nirvana upside down so that it will be unable to advance forward onto Cait Shelter.

Elden's efforts was foiled as Nirvana backflipped and managed to plant two of its long spider-like legs into the ground and used it to anchor itself in midair before landing down onto the ground perfectly in an incredible show of acrobatics you will not expect to see from such a humongous structure. A large earthquake erupted in the area from the impact and the entirety of Wendy's group had to hold onto something to prevent themselves from being thrown backwards from the resulting shock wave.

Whoever is controlling Nirvana seemed to get impatient as the large cannon situated on it pointed itself at the warrior before charging up a huge amount of magical energy. The warrior remained unfazed as numerous barriers that looked like shining golden doors appeared in a straight row in front of the warrior. Wendy have no idea how far the range of the cannon extends to. If it can hit Cait Shelter from here, then Elden and his construct are the only ones standing in between Nirvana's attack and Cait Shelter right now. Should they fail...

Wendy shook her heads to get rid of the negative thoughts in her head. She would have tried to assist Elden in defending her guild with her enchantments but she is still too far away. Carla couldn't even fly her close to Elden given how destructive the battle is.

The magical beam was fired from Nirvana as it obliterated the set of doors one by one but even with its destruction, each door managed to weaken the magical beam little by little. She saw Elden's warrior creating a huge shield with Fairy Tail's guild insignia emblazoned on it and the warrior held the shield in front of it firmly.

The last set of door groaned from the impact of Nirvana's attack and started to crack. The entire group held their breath, praying that the attack would be stopped.

It didn't.

Nirvana's massive beam broke through the door and blasted at the shield that Elden had constructed for his warrior. The velocity and impact of the beam pushed the ethereal warrior back which resulted in many fallen trees. The shield only held for a few seconds before it started to crack and Wendy gasped with her hands over her mouth as the beam tore through the shield and the ethereal warrior, vapourising them in an instant.

No. No. No please no Elden couldn't have...

Two large purple skeletal arms suddenly appeared in the air and a huge crossbow materialised in their bony fingers with an arrow already loaded on it. The arrow was shot towards Nirvana's cannon at breakneck speeds that left a sonic boom in its wake. However, Nirvana used one of its long legs to bat it aside and successfully defended itself from harm.

The ethereal warrior quickly came back to life as it fired arrows at Nirvana in rapid succession. Nirvana used its long legs to knock them aside in one fell swoop before charging up another attack. The ethereal warrior chose to charge at Nirvana again and only just managed to redirect the beam of magical energy upwards by forcefully pushing Nirvana's cannon up and point it towards the sky with its hands.

"I found it!" Hibiki exclaimed as he began to type furiously on his holographic keyboard. "I found a way to destroy Nirvana!"

"What are we waiting for then? Let's get a move on already!" Sorano shouted back.

Hibiki scowled at Sorano before turning a screen towards Sorano and Wendy, letting them read the information he just dug out in his Archives. "There's just a little problem." He said before pointing to the walking weapon that they were tasked to destroy who is still duking it out with Elden's construct. "We need to somehow get up there, but Carla is the only one who is able to fly and she can't ferry all of us. Not to mention that we have to get up there while Elden and Nirvana are..." He gestured with his outstretched hand towards the direction of the two titans. "Well, you can see for yourself how destructive their battle is."

"I have Gemini. Gemini can copy Carla's magic and take me up there. Carla can carry Wendy. That leaves you."

Hibiki's eyebrows furrowed in thought. "I will find another way up then. Realistically the only thing I can do now is relay information with my magic, I am not a combat-oriented mage. So my presence in Nirvana is not really needed as long as I can communicate with you guys with my magic. You guys go up first, I have another idea in mind."

"Take care, Hibiki-san." Wendy called out as Carla brought her higher and higher into the air.

"You too, Wendy-chan." Hibiki turned to Sorano who is using Gemini-Carla to fly. "You take care of her. Got it?"

Sorano didn't deign a reply, but her body language is enough assurance for Hibiki to know that Sorano will at least keep an eye out on the child.

* * *

"Stu...pid... Vehicle..."

"Natsu-san!"

"Wen...dy?" Natsu groaned from his motion sickness as he tried to locate the fellow Dragon Slayer with his ears and nose. His vision is still swimming.

" _Is he experiencing motion sickness?_ " Natsu heard Hibiki's voice in his head and he smelt Sorano nearby as well together with Wendy's cat.

"God, he's pathetic." The voice which was unmistakenly Angel's rang out. "Why did I agree to this? Oh right, Yukino's in the same guild as this fool."

"Hang in there Natsu-san!" Wendy said as Natsu felt her walked up to him and touched both sides of his head with her hands filled with magic.

"Troia!"

"I'M BACKKKK!" Natsu shouted as he blasted a cone of fire into the air in celebration. "NO MORE MOTION SICKNESS! TAKE THAT YOU STUPID VEHICLE!"

" _Now that I have located everyone, listen up! I've found a way to destroy Nirvana for good_! _Here's the plan..._ "

...

 _"Six lacrimas at different locations? And we have to destroy them at once?! How?!"_

A buzz of static was the only indication of a newcomer into their conversation.

 _"I compliment you for pushing me as far as you did, mages of the light."_

 _"Who's that?!"_

 _"The communications got hijacked?!"_

 _"This voice! Zero! How are you awake?!"_ Sorano exclaimed.

 _"You think too little of Brain, Angel. If you think that by staying out of the conflict you can keep me at bay then you are dead wrong. If Brain can seal myself, then he is equally capable of unsealing me regardless if the five of you are dead or alive. You think we don't have any countermeasures in the event one of you betrayed the group? I will deal with your traitorous behaviour later."_ There was a short pause before Zero's voice rang out again. _"Let me officially introduce myself. My name is Zero, the master of Oracion Seis. You spoke of destroying all the lacrimas at once, yes? Well, I myself stand at this moment before one of those lacrima crystals! As long as I am here, you have no hope of destroying them all at once! WAHAHAHA! COME! MAGES OF THE LIGHT! I WILL BE WAITING!"_

With that, Zero dropped the mental connection.

 _"We need six mages! Who are available?!"_

 _"Jellal and I are still able to fight!"_ Erza's voice rang out. _"That's two!"_

 _"D-Don't forget about me!"_ Ichiya's voice responded. _"Jura-san had fallen to protect me, but I am still capable of fighting!"_

 _"I will volunteer as well."_ Sorano cut in. _"That makes four."_

 _"Count me in! I can finally destroy a vehicle without feeling sick! It's time for payback! RRAGH!"_

 _"Natsu-san! Don't run off by yourself!"_ Wendy tried in vain to stop Natsu as he ran off on his own without warning.

 _"So that leaves us with one more?"_

 _"Gray, Lyon, Sherry, Ren, Eve, and I are on board the Christina this very moment and we are on our way to help Elden slow down Nirvana's progress!"_ Hibiki called out once more. _"We won't be able to help in destroying the lacrimas!"_

 _"Wendy! What about you?"_

 _"I can't use any destructive magic..."_

 _"BULLSHIT!"_ Wendy flinched at Natsu's loud voice resonating in her head. _"You are a Dragon Slayer like me! Use a Dragon Roar or something! Have more faith in yourself!"_

 _"R-Right."_ Wendy took a deep breath to calm her nerves. Her guild's survival is at stake! This is no time to be doubting herself! _"I-I will take number six!"_

 _"Urgh... Sorry for the late reply. I was out like a light. What did I miss?"_ Lucy's voice sounded.

 _"Lucy! Can you go with Wendy to help destroy a lacrima? This is our only chance to destroy Nirvana!"_

 _"Huh? What? Erza? What's going on?"_

 _"Just do it!"_

 _"Oh... ok! Where is everyone anyway?"_

 _"Don't worry, Lucy. I will upload a map and a countdown timer of twenty minutes into your heads."_ The map and timer appeared as soon as Hibiki said those words. _"Twenty minutes is the amount of time we have left before Nirvana fires its second shot. By the way, you guys might want to hold onto something. Christina is going to fire soon. Hopefully this can buy enough time for Nirvana to not reach Cait Shelter in the event we failed to stop it before Nirvana finished charging up its attack."_

One of Nirvana's legs was shot by a huge beam of magical energy from above by Christina on the outside, causing the mages who are within the ancient city to fall down onto the ground from the impact. However, the leg that was shot barely had a scratch on it. Nirvana straightened itself before continuing its way to Cait Shelter, not even bothered in the least by Christina's attack.

 _"Damn! What is that thing made of?! We don't have a second shot!"_

 _"An earlier warning next time will be appreciated!"_ Lucy yelled out through the telepathy.

 _"Can you guys just get on with destroying the lacrimas already?!"_ Elden's frustrated voice was heard for the first time in the shared link between their minds. _"Holding out for twenty minutes while maintaining Susanoo's full form is stretching my limits! I don't know how much longer I can delay Nirvana! It's already pushing me back!"_

Wendy felt herself getting gently pushed in the back by Sorano as Sorano called out in the telepathic link once more. _"Lucy, or whatever your name is. I will go with Wendy. You make your way to another lacrima by yourself, it's more efficient this way since I'm already with her."_

 _"That's fine with me."_

 _"Each lacrima is marked with a number! Everyone pick a number on the map!"_

 _"I'm heading for number one!"_ Natsu roared out, no doubt running at full speed to the location.

 _"Two for me."_ Jellal replied calmly.

 _"I'll take three!"_ Lucy said as she picked a number to go to.

 _"I will go to number four! The perfume tells me that it is the closest to my location!"_

 _"I think you mean the map."_ Was Erza's blunt reply. _"I'll handle five."_

 _"That means we will be going to number six."_ Sorano completed the plan as she dropped the mental connection. She grabbed onto Wendy's arm and dragged her along to their destination.

"Come on, we don't have all day."

* * *

How long has it been? Ten minutes? Fifteen minutes?

Please tell me it's nearing the twenty minute mark soon, I don't think I can hold onto Susanoo Stage III much longer. It's a miracle that I'm still awake despite the drowsiness I feel. I guess all the training I did before I ended up here had paid off.

The Christina had crashed onto the ground the moment it finished dropping its attack, the mages on board the ship had expended their powers trying to fix it up and fired that salvo. I'm the only one left who is able to slow Nirvana's advance to Cait Shelter.

And I'm doing a pretty shit job at it, in my opinion.

I have no idea what Nirvana is made of. No matter how much I slice and hack at its legs, it just won't get damaged enough for it to slow down. Any damages I managed to inflict on it was repaired mere seconds later due to it sucking ethernano from the earth itself through the legs to repair itself. I cannot destroy Nirvana by slashing at the city on top of it as the other half of the alliance forces are still up there, so the legs are the only thing that I am allowed to damage if I don't want to accidentally kill any of our allies.

Nirvana just kept pushing me back no matter how I attacked it. I tried to box it in on all sides with my barriers to stop its advance but it just broke through it shortly after without any fuss. Nirvana has too much power while I'm quickly losing mine. There's still a fair bit of distance, but Cait Shelter is already in sight and behind me, which is overall pretty bad news since that means that Cait Shelter is now within firing range of Nirvana's cannon.

0:59

Alright, according to the timer Hibiki uploaded into our minds, one more minute on the timer before everything either ends well, or it goes to shit. I _really_ , _really_ hope that the rest will be successful in destroying the lacrimas. I don't think I can stop another attack by Nirvana head-on given how long I have been fighting it out with the mobile city. Susanoo is not even in its complete full form anymore. Some of the armour have been ripped off and remained unreplaced. Even some of the muscles were already gone, leaving only the bones. I simply cannot afford to spare anymore magic in case the lacrimas were failed to be destroyed in time and I have to protect Cait Shelter with my remaining magic power.

I let my Susanoo charge towards Nirvana for what could be the umpteenth time that day as it tried to forcefully hold Nirvana back by pushing against it with pure strength.

0:30

Only thirty seconds left? Good. Hurry it up already!

Nirvana tried to tear Susanoo off it but I gritted my teeth and forcefully reinforced the construct. Susanoo's grip on Nirvana remained firm.

0:10

I commanded Susanoo gave a final attempt to push against Nirvana and I felt the strain on my body and my eyelids getting heavier. I cannot sleep now! I just need a few more seconds!

0:03

0:02

0:01

To my immense relief, each of Nirvana's six legs exploded at the joint area that connected them to the main body of Nirvana just when the twenty minutes were up. Seems like the destruction squad had pulled through.

Hell yeah.

"Kyaaaa!"

Is that Lucy?

Oh, I forgot that not everyone has a flying cat or the ability to fly. I should still have enough magic to help them get down to the ground safely if I use it wisely. Let's see... I spotted Lucy thanks to her screaming, I think I spotted Ichiya who is falling down from the air... while _sparkling_. Gross. Sorano and Wendy are able to fly into the air with... why are there two Carlas? I think I see Natsu's pink hair too. Jellal is carrying Erza bridal style while zipping around with Meteor.

I doubt even Jellal and the Carlas can get out of there without getting hit by the falling debris. There's too many of them.

I willed Susanoo away and flew towards my comrades. I shielded myself in a sphere made of barriers while making my way towards the falling city. With a mental thought, everyone within the range of my magic were encased in a protective sphere of barrier as well.

"El!"

"Nice timing!"

I mentally commanded the spheres carrying my comrades to fly closer to me as I brought us down towards the ground where the rest of our allies who were on board the Christina were waiting and waving at us to catch our attention. I willed the spheres away the moment we touched ground. I'm totally spent.

"Thank you, Elden-san." Wendy said the moment we landed safely and hugged me in excitement with tears in her eyes. "Thank you, for helping to buy time to save my guild."

"No problem." I replied as my eyelids started to close involuntarily. "Now, if you will excuse me, I think I'm going to sleep. Good night."

And with that, I fell into blissful unconsciousness.

* * *

When I woke up, I am already on a ship heading back to Fairy Tail with Team Natsu together with Wendy and Carla.

It seems that no matter how much I tried to change things, some things will still remain the same, especially the main plot of canon. Is this the power of canon?

From what I gathered from Team Natsu and the two ex-members of Cait Shelter, the magic council had shown up with Lahar leading them the moment we had destroyed Nirvana. They immediately arrested Sorano and Hoteye, the latter had turned good due to Nirvana's influence during his fight with Jura. The alliance had thrown a big ruckus about Lahar's words, especially Team Natsu regarding Sorano since she is Yukino's older sister but Sorano silenced them and told them that she will go with the Rune Knights that have shown up.

 _"My little sister has been living her life as a proper, decent human being! She can't get mixed up with an elder sister who's committed so many unforgivable crimes! That's why...that's why someday...if all my sins are ever atoned for...I'll come back, and give my little sister the biggest hug in the world!"_

That was what Sorano had said to the alliance before she willingly turned herself in. On top of that, Erza brought out the golden zodiac keys that used to belong to Sorano, saying that Sorano had entrusted me to pass her keys to Yukino. She had requested Erza to hold onto it on my behalf since I was out cold from magic exhaustion. Jura had volunteered to accompany the Rune Knights back so that he can plead for a lighter sentence for both Sorano and Hoteye, who I now know his real name is Richard. The words of a Wizard Saint cannot be easily brushed off by the council, so the chances of both Sorano and Hoteye getting a lighter sentence will increase significantly if Jura is there to vouch for their contributions in our efforts against Oracion Seis during their trial.

When I inquired about their own respective battles when we were forced to split up thanks to Racer's assault, I found that the canon plot had largely remained the same, much to my surprise. Gray's team took down Racer, Natsu and Lucy brought down Cobra but Lucy was knocked unconscious and Natsu suffered from motion sickness upon landing onto Nirvana. Brain happened to encounter the incapacitated Natsu and dragged him away in an attempt to turn him evil with Nirvana's influence, but was stopped by Jura and Ichiya who intercepted Brain halfway. Brain was defeated by Jura in the end.

Hoteye had also turned good beforehand in his battle with Jura and Ichiya but remained behind to deal with Midnight who had appeared out of nowhere. Hoteye lost, however, and Midnight continued his hunt until he ran into Erza and Jellal.

I pity the poor fool who thought that he can take on both Erza _and_ Jellal and win.

Brain managed to use his telepathy and posed as Richard to trick Jura and Ichiya into a trap, and Jura fell prey to it in his attempt to protect Ichiya from harm the moment the trap was sprung. The plot thereafter remained largely the same where six mages have to go destroy the lacrimas within Nirvana, and whatever happened next is history. Natsu had somehow met Jellal on their way to their own respective lacrimas and Jellal had gave Natsu the Flame of Rebuke, allowing Natsu to go into Dragon Force temporarily. This act had momentarily cut down Jellal's powers drastically but he still had enough in him to destroy his own lacrima. Natsu had also managed to pull through in his fight against Zero in Dragon Force mode, although he was really pulling it off by the skin of his teeth. He nearly didn't destroy it within the time limit.

I was asleep for two days until Wendy, the kind child that she is, got very worried about my condition. Team Natsu waved it off, saying that it is normal for me to sleep for long periods of time after a big battle, and cited my week long coma after our guild's war with Phantom Lord as proof. Wendy wasn't convinced and attempted to wake me up with her magic.

It actually worked. This means that with Wendy's magic, I no longer need to go into a semi-coma every single time after a big battle. I will still be exhausted, but at least I don't need to be out cold during the recovery phase.

It didn't take us long for us to finally return to the guild and I broke the news of Sorano's capture to Yukino. Yukino was stunned from the news and took a long while to try and wrap her mind around this issue. She probably couldn't believe that the older sister who had cared so much for her was not only alive, but became a dark mage of a notorious dark guild. The Monster Legion promised that we would bring her to see Sorano after her trial. Right now no one is allowed to see Sorano until her trial is over.

Yukino fiddled around with the zodiac keys that Sorano had left her with for a few days without summoning the spirits, but she managed to muster the courage to call upon them in the end. What she did next surprised me.

Upon learning Scorpio's relationship with Aquarius, Yukino actually gave Scorpio's key to Lucy, saying that it would make both spirits happier if they both contract under the same summoner.

Yukino really has a big heart. There are only twelve of such powerful keys in this world and she willingly gave one of them away just like that. I'm not sure if I can bring myself to do the same thing as her if I were in her shoes.

Yukino kept Aries's and Gemini's keys with her and both Celestial Spirits were happy to have her as their new summoner. With that, Yukino now have five zodiac keys in her possession. Together with Lucy, Fairy Tail now has eleven out of the twelve zodiac keys in the entire world.

Ain't that a scary thought?

Wendy and Carla were also warmly welcomed into Fairy Tail and the entire guild was excited at the prospect at having another Dragon Slayer with us. I noticed that Gajeel kept giving odd looks at Happy and Carla during the entire time we were celebrating Wendy's inclusion into the guild. I wonder what he's thinking about?

The first thing I did after Yukino got herself over the news of Sorano's capture was to prepare myself for the immediate future. The end of the Oracion Seis arc means that the one arc which I am the most afraid of happening is coming soon.

The Tenrou arc.

I think the Edolas arc happened between the Oracion Seis arc and the Tenrou arc but I can't seem to remember what it is about beyond canon Lisanna coming back. That point is moot now since she never went there to begin with thanks to my interference. For all I know, the Edolas arc may not even happen since the Anima didn't even appear two years ago when I saved Lisanna from her supposed 'death'. Things are starting to deviate more and more from what I remembered out of the series, I cannot rely solely on what I can remember about it. Assuming Edolas is out of the way, the Tenrou arc is the most dangerous arc among the major plots in the series that will happen soon.

Not only will our guild be facing off the entire of Grimoire Heart, we will witness the appearance of Zeref and Acnologia as well. The latter two are what made this arc dangerous since no one in the guild is strong enough to face against any one of them. Maybe we will in time, but that time is not now.

Fairy Tail has strong mages, no doubt about it. Even after being trapped in suspended animation for seven years all they needed was a few months of training to climb their way back up to being Fiore's number one guild again. What other mages needed seven years to accomplish, our guild only needed a few months to surpass them.

That's how crazy strong we are. Some of the older members in the guild had even start to call us the 'Golden Generation' of the guild.

I vaguely remember that there was a one year time skip after the Tartaros arc and it was then the main cast from Fairy Tail got really overpowered. Even then, most of them nearly lost their lives in the war against Zeref's army (where did they come from again?) and I think Master lost his life there as well until our First Master performed a miracle and revived him. At least, that's what I managed to remember. I don't even know if I have all the facts right.

Disregarding who died and lived, if Fairy Tail can accomplish all these after about slightly more than one year after their time on Tenrou (discounting their seven years disappearance) and grew strong enough to defeat the best of Zeref's wizards, what can an extra seven years do? Imagine it, another seven years of training without being stuck in stasis. How strong will everyone who went to Tenrou grow to be?

I don't know if things will remain the same ever since I appeared in this world. Too many things have changed even if so far, things have largely remained the same with a few minor changes. I cannot fall back on canon and pray that the same circumstances will save my friends if things went south. I can't fight every battle for them and I'm not even the strongest mage around. No matter how I think about it, the best way to ensure my nakamas' survival is to make them as strong as possible.

I need to obtain the extra seven years for them. The seven years that the combination of Fairy Sphere and Acnologia had robbed away from them. If my nakamas have an extra seven years to prepare for what is bound to happen, our chances of survival will definitely skyrocket. I need to think of a way to prevent them from being trapped in stasis. I need to think of a way to get the Tenrou group out of Tenrou Island safely. I need to think of a way to prevent Acnologia from attacking us or if the worse comes to pass, I need a way to defend everyone without a single casualty on our side.

I have so many ideas but each one is more ludicrous than the previous one. None of them are feasible and it is frustrating me to no end. Even if I allowed Fairy Sphere to activate as what happened in canon and everyone managed to come out safe and sound after the seven years stasis, it doesn't change the fact that they were gone from the world for seven years. It's no different than being dead for seven years. Mentally, it doesn't affect the ones who were trapped in Tenrou, but the ones who were left behind will definitely be devastated. Just look at Romeo's mental state after the seven year time skip before the Tenrou group returned.

It's always the ones who were left behind that is left to pick up the pieces. Death comes easy, living is hard.

And that's why I am determined to prevent the stasis from happening. I am going to give my all for this. I need to come up with a plan. A _feasible_ plan. For the sake of letting my friends having a higher chance to survive the upcoming battles after the Tenrou arc, for the sake of those who will be left behind should the Tenrou arc pan out as it did in canon, for the sake of our guild, the same guild that had pulled my broken self together when I was first violently thrust into this insane world of magic without my consent after the death of my previous life, even if these adorable idiots didn't know about it.

I really, really love this guild. I really want to protect everyone. That's what it means to be the Ace of the guild, isn't it? To be the sword and shield of the guild. To be the strongest member of the guild, bar the master, so that when the time calls for it, the Ace can protect everyone in the guild. Laxus can be Fairy Tail's sword with how strong his attacks are.

I will be the shield of the guild. Together, we will make the strongest duo in Fairy Tail.

I had promised Laxus that I will be his Ace when he becomes the master, I might as well start getting used to the job now. Gildarts will return sometime before the Tenrou arc based on what I could remember, I will need to spar with him to see if I have caught up to him when he returns.

Till date, I am still clueless how Fairy Sphere induced a stasis in canon. Such an effect wasn't recorded in the book that Laxus and I had learnt Fairy Law and Fairy Sphere from when we were younger and I didn't get myself into a stasis either when I cast the spell. It's something I will need to test out as soon as possible. I need to find out what went wrong in canon that caused the stasis.

I need more information. I need more ideas. I need more power.

I am Elden Tyrell, S Class mage of Fairy Tail.

I am the Aegis of Fairy Tail. I am the shield of the guild.

I will protect Fairy Tail if it's the last thing I do.

* * *

 **AN: Sorry for the late update, but here it is. Hopefully I didn't screw up the Oracion Seis arc too badly, I'm still unsatisfied with how I wrote it but I don't have any better ideas.**

 **Hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	16. Chapter 16- Only The Best For Her

"Elden-sama!"

"Freed, Ever, Bickslow." I greeted the Thunder God Tribe as they walked up to me enthusiastically where I was waiting for them in the town square. It's been a long time since I spent quality time with them.

"What do you need our help with?" Bickslow asked as his dolls chanted after him repeatedly as usual.

It's been about a week since I've gotten back to the guild after the Oracion Seis incident. There's something that I really wanted to do but I've been forced to put it off due to the amount of fights our guild had been involved in recently since the war with Phantom Lord. I can finally start on it now that I finally have the free time, but I need some extra help.

I need advice, I need opinions, and I need people who won't go blabbing about it. I want it to be a pleasant surprise. I can trust the Thunder God Tribe, the three of them know when and how to keep their mouth shut when it is needed.

"I'm going to do some shopping and I need opinions on what I'm planning to buy."

"Shopping?" Evergreen's voice rose a few notes higher at the incredulity of the notion of me doing any kind of shopping. The only thing I ever buy on a regular basis are books and groceries. The whole guild knows that.

"Yeah, shopping." I nodded and pointed to a certain object lying on display through a glass cabinet of a nearby jewelry store. "This is the first time I will be buying something like that and I really need some quality opinions. I need you guys to keep quiet about it too, I want it to be a surprise for Mira."

The trio looked at the object that I'm currently pointing at.

"A... ring?"

"Yup. They are going to be a matching pair, and I want it to be the most beautiful ring for her."

"El-Elden-sama! Does that mean-!"

"I'm planning to propose to Mira."

I watched in satisfied amusement as the jaws of the trio widened comically as they were struck by the news I dropped on them. Like I said, I'm planning to propose to Mira.

Officially, we have only been dating for two years, but we have known each other for six years when Mira first joined the guild. We knew each other like the back of our hand. The topic of marriage had came up in our conversations before and I know Mira isn't averse to the idea of marriage, although I'm sure she isn't expecting me to propose anytime soon. All things considered, we are already acting like a married couple minus the living together part and sex. We had our intimate moments that goes beyond passionate kissing, indecent touching, and seeing each other in the buff by bathing together in her bathroom but we have never gotten to the point of having sexual intercourse. Mira is actually pretty open to the idea of having sex, but for some reason it just didn't happen. Personally, if I have to point fingers, I feel that a large part of the reason is because the rest of the Monster Legion are usually with us most of the time. We are inseparable as a group, especially so ever since Mira and I had started dating. Dating her means that she and her siblings comes in a package deal. Not like I minded, I know Mira is very protective of her siblings and I admired her for it. Despite Mira's outgoing personality, the one thing that she is similar to me is that she needs her own private time to recharge after a long day outside socialising with people and she didn't mind spending that time together with me. Both of us prefer spending that private time in her room at her apartment as compared to mine after a busy day at the guild even if we also have our own private dates in various parts of Magnolia. It's hard for the both of us to have sex even if we wanted to when the three other members of her household are almost constantly around and Mira's room isn't sound-proofed. Mira and I didn't mind though, we love each other and it goes past the physical attraction we have for each other. As long as the both of us aren't out on our respective jobs, we will find time to at least eat our meals together and it is a common occurrence for me to spend some time at night at her place before I went back to my apartment to sleep.

I think that it's time for me to stop dawdling and take the initiative to take our relationship a step further. We may be young, but the world here is very different from the one in my previous life. Many people in this world got married around the age of twenty, give or take. It's perfectly normal. I love Mira and there's no one else who I rather spend the rest of my life with.

I love her with every fiber of my being and I know she feels the same way. I want us to be husband and wife.

"Congratulations!" The trio broke out of their stunned state and dogpiled me happily. I quickly wormed out of their embrace and shushed them.

"Thanks guys, but keep it down, alright? It's supposed to be a secret. I'm still trying to plan on how to propose to her but I really need the ring before that happens. That's why I need your help, I don't really trust my own fashion sense and I know nothing about jewelry. Mira will be away for a photoshoot for a few days so this is the best time to get it done."

The three of them nodded with vigour at my words with sparkles in their eyes. Even Bickslow had light shining through from the inside of his visor.

I had long since given up trying to understand anime logic in this world. It will be better to just accept it and move on.

"We will not fail you, Elden-sama!" Freed proclaimed as he saluted like a soldier.

"Will we get to be the godfather and godmother of your first-born child?" Bickslow teased.

"Uh... Laxus will probably get priority for being the godfather. I think Mira will want Erza to be godmother as far as this issue is concerned. We wouldn't mind if you guys want to be the cool aunts and uncles to our future kids though, if we have any."

"An aunt! I'm going to be an aunt!" Evergreen chirped as she bounced excitedly.

I sweatdropped as I tried to placate the excited trio. "Guys... I need to propose to Mira first even before that can happen."

"RIGHT!" The three of them said in unison. "Don't worry, we will do our best to help you choose the best ring for Mira!" Evergreen proclaimed. She takes great pride in her beauty and her fashion sense, asking for her help on this issue is definitely the right choice to make.

"I'm curious though, why didn't you ask the rest of the Monster Legion?" Bickslow inquired. "The more help, the better, right? They know Mira as well as you do, surely they will be able to help out."

"Mira knows them too well, there's no way the three of them can keep a secret from her. It's not like I don't want help from Lisanna, Elfman, and Yukino, but they will be exposed even before the week is up. There's a chance she will still find out about this regardless of the precautions I take, but at least the risk is reduced to a minimum this way."

"When are you planning to propose?"

"The S Class trials will be coming soon and things will get really busy for Mira and I in helping Master plan the entire thing. I'm planning to propose after the trials. It will be nearing Christmas by then and everyone in the guild should be free. I want the entire guild to bear witness. The festive mood from the approaching Christmas will be a bonus too."

"That's..."

"So..."

"Romantic!"

"Thanks guys." I said sincerely as we entered the jewelry shop and we browsed through the rings on display.

We spent at least two hours going through from store to store trying to find the perfect ring for Mira and I. There are some really beautiful ones, but none of them felt right.

"Yo! El! Freed! Bix! Ever!"

A surprisingly sober Cana waved and walked up to us on the streets. Wendy and Carla are by her side.

"Afternoon, Cana, Wendy, Carla. What are you guys doing?"

"Eh, just being helpful and showing Wendy and Carla around town. They only just moved here recently after all."

"Cana's been a great help." Wendy piped up. "Elden-san, what are you guys doing?"

The Thunder God Tribe looked a little uneasy at the question and shot inquiring stares at me, not knowing if I want to reveal my 'secret' to them.

"Alright, something's going on here. 'Fess up, guys. What's going on?" Cana said as she slung an arm around my shoulder while bringing out a bottle of alcohol.

Damn, Cana can be sharp when she's sober. No point hiding anything from her.

"We are doing some shopping." I replied smoothly. "I'm planning to get a ring for myself and Mira."

Cana spat out her drink from the shock and I can see Wendy's eyes widening from the news. Must they have such a reaction?

"Finally!" Cana exclaimed as she clapped me on my back. "About damn time you get your lazy ass off and propose to her!"

"C-Congratulations!" Wendy squeaked out as her face turned red at the thought of marriage.

"Congratulations." Carla said as she floated beside Wendy. "Do you guys need any help?"

"Well, since Elden told you guys the truth, you might as well help us in picking out the perfect ring." Evergreen replied as she flicked her hair backwards exaggeratedly. "We browsed through numerous shops but none of the rings felt right to Elden."

"Consider it done!" Cana said as she grabbed onto my arm and dragged me along to the next shop right across the street. "You are going to win me _so_ much money from the betting pool, El! Just think of all the booze I can buy from the money!"

What? The betting pool about me and Mira is still going on? I thought it was over the moment Mira and I became a couple!

* * *

"No. This isn't the right one either." I said in frustration as we exited the n-th store for the day.

"You are surprisingly picky. Wouldn't have expected that from you given how easygoing you usually are."

"This is for Mira, Cana. A once in a lifetime thing. Of course I will be picky. I just didn't expect to not find even a single ring that is suitable for us."

"Um... maybe we are going about this the wrong way?"

The rest of us looked at Wendy, who suddenly look flustered from the amount of attention we are giving her.

"I-I mean... if there are no available rings in town that suits Elden-san and Mira-san, maybe we should try creating the rings on our own instead? It should be achievable with magic."

My mind worked in overdrive as I processed the feasibility of the suggestion. It might just work.

"Wendy." I said as I placed both my hands on her shoulders and let a smile work its way across my face. "You are a genius."

"We will need to find someone who is skilled enough to craft the perfect ring." Bickslow reminded.

"I just happen to know of such a place." Evergreen said confidently. "It slipped my mind, but that shop had been in the jewelry crafting business even before our guild is founded, so the quality of their goods are assured. I know the head craftsman of the place personally as well, he is good at what he does. Good job for thinking of such a brilliant idea, Wendy."

"What are we waiting for?" Cana said as she pushed us all forward. "Let's go!"

* * *

"Hmm... how about these designs?"

The elderly craftsman that we had found thanks to Evergreen's help presented several sketches that he drew up on the spot. The first thing he did when I asked him for his help in crafting the rings was to ask how Mira looked like, what kind of person she is and what I liked about her. I showed him a picture of her that I always kept with me as I described Mira's character to him. He used the information I provided to draw up the resulting sketches.

Each of his sketches are beautiful but only one truly caught my eye. That one particular sketch of the proposed design of the rings are perfect. They embody everything I love about Mira.

I love Mira for her confidence and her kindness. She is the most beautiful person I have ever met and it's not just her appearance. Her heart is beautiful and full of kindness. If I have to choose something to represent her, it would be the periwinkle flower, which shared the same name as the colour of her eyes, a periwinkle blue. The periwinkle flower can mean many things. It can mean a blossoming friendship, it can mean the reminiscence of a pleasant memory with a close friend or relative, it can mean reaching your full potential and achieving your dreams, it can mean the existence throughout eternity and extending your time with what you love, it can mean everlasting love and also both purity and strength.

The periwinkle flower represent her accurately, and it did symbolise the many things that we did and experienced together other than a few stated above. The remaining few is what I want to experience with her.

Everlasting love, and to extend my time with her, the one person who I love, for eternity. I want to experience it with her.

Mira is everything that I cannot be, she's everything that I strive to achieve. I would not be half the man I am today without her. If it wasn't for her, I will still be the same recluse hiding in a corner of the guild somewhere with minimal interaction to even my guild members. She brought me out of my shell. She made me whole. She made me happy and I want to make her happy for the rest of her life.

The particular design that caught my interest is a ring that is designed such that there are elegant engravings of leaves sprouting and curling around the body of the ring. On the top of it is where a small flower blooms, the center of it is where the gemstone will sit.

It's beautiful.

It will be perfect.

"I want this design with a few alterations." I said to the craftsman after making my choice, pushing the sketch of the chosen design forward to him across the table. The rest of the guild members who had followed me here craned their necks to see what I have finally chosen after so long.

"Haha! You are a picky customer, young man! But I love picky customers! They give me the greatest challenge!" The elderly craftsman's laughter boomed out in the small room that we are huddled in. "Come, state your preferences!" He continued as he whipped out a notebook and a pen.

"The flower, can you change the design into a periwinkle flower instead?"

"Oh?" The elderly man raised an eyebrow as he jotted my request down. "That is simple enough. May I ask why?"

"Her eyes are a periwinkle blue."

I ignored the sound of 'awwws' from my fellow guild members as they cooed at my words.

"Ah, young love, it's good to be young." The craftsman said with a blissful look on his face as he jotted it down. "Anything else?"

"I plan to magically enchant the ring, so the materials used should take that into consideration."

That got the old man's attention.

"I plan to put some of my powers into Mira's ring. Mira's strong, but there are many people out there that are stronger than us combined. I won't always be there to protect her. If I put some of my powers into her ring, it might be able to protect her when she really needs it."

"That's sweet and thoughtful of you." Cana commented as she continued drinking from another bottle she pulled out of thin air.

"Uwah... how romantic." Wendy said as she had a dreamy look on her face.

"Moving on." I said as I tried to fight down the embarrassment and the blush that I'm sure is on my face. "I want one of the rings to be black in colour, and the flower on top to be white. Ivory white. If it's possible, I want the jewelry stone in the middle to be golden in colour, or something close to that. As for the other ring, I want it to be mainly white in colour, the colour of the flower to be periwinkle blue and the jewelry stone in the middle to be a dark purple."

"Elden-sama, why that specific colour scheme?" Freed asked curiously.

"Black represents me, white represents Mira." I replied. "Periwinkle blue stands for Mira as well since it's the colour of her eyes. The stones are golden and dark purple in colour because that's the colour of our magic when we are at our strongest. My strongest defensive spell is golden in colour while Mira's Satan Soul takes on a dark purple hue."

"I don't foresee any problems with regards to the design." The craftsman replied as he took down my preferences with regards to the rings. "There's a problem with the materials required to make the rings though. At the very least, we will probably have to use lacrima stones to replace the diamond I had originally planned. Diamond doesn't conduct magic at all, so we can't use it as part of the materials to craft the rings if you want to imbue your own magic in it."

The craftsman closed his book shut as he looked at us. "I understand you are an S Class mage, Elden-dono. While this isn't the first time I have to craft a magically enchanted object, none of the objects I crafted so far needed to hold the amount of power that would be required for your rings. For someone of your calibre, a very strong type of metal and lacrima is needed to craft what you need if you want to imbue your powers into the rings. Unfortunately, such materials are out of stock at the moment and they are very hard to come across in the first place. The last time I got my hands on one of these babies was about thirty years ago."

"Where can we find something like that?" Bickslow inquired.

"That's the problem." The craftsman huffed out. "The metal I have in mind is Maginium, which is extremely magic-resistant but also extremely rare. It is because they are magic-resistant that they also end up being the best materials to hold magic for very long periods of time. It's like trying to induce magnetism into a piece of metal, the harder it is to induce, the longer it takes for it to lose its magnetism when it has finally been induced. Only metals like Maginium are able to contain the power of an S Class mage, it is also the material used to create the prison cells that house the most dangerous of criminal mages in Fiore after undergoing a special process. For your case, it will be hard to charge it up with magic initially, but it should not be a problem with a little tweaking during the crafting process to change its properties slightly for what you plan to use it for. War-grade lacrimas should be used as well for the jewelry stone. They can store large amount of power on top of looking prettier than diamonds, that I can guarantee you."

"This is... troubling." Evergreen said as she put one of her fingers to her chin in thought.

"We will find the materials required, don't worry about that." I reassured the elderly craftsman. "Assuming I found the materials, how long will it take for you to craft the rings?"

"About a month or so. But I think I can get it out in an even shorter period of time if I put my back into it." He replied as he scratched his head with a finger. "Good luck with finding the materials, kid. This will probably be one of my masterpieces if you really managed to find the materials. It's not everyday a craftsman gets to have a chance to work with Maginium and war-grade lacrima."

"Don't worry, it will be a masterpiece."

I will find the materials needed and I have no doubt it will be a masterpiece. After all, I only want the best for Mira.

She deserves nothing less.

* * *

"So... how are you going to go about finding the materials the old man spoke about?"

"I will have to ask around. Maybe someone from our allied guilds will know something about it. Jura might know since he is a Wizard Saint and someone of his position might know of this material that the council uses to restrain dark mages. Regardless, I will find a way. I cannot screw this up. I want this to be perfect for Mira."

"Well, good luck." Cana said as she continued to chug down another bottle of alcohol she brought along with her. How she kept the bottles on her person with only a small bag is something I never found out. I'm pretty sure she doesn't use Requip. "If you need any help, just tell me. I'll be happy to help."

"Same here, Elden-san." Wendy said politely.

"Thanks guys." I said sincerely.

Cana waved it off as she and Wendy walked on ahead to head back to the guild with Carla flying overhead.

"Lunch, anyone?" I asked the Thunder God Tribe. "It's been some time since we are all together. Well, Laxus isn't here, but I don't think that will stop us from having fun."

"Let's have lunch!" Bickslow cried out as his dolls chanted out with him.

"The usual place?" Evergreen inquired.

"The usual place." I nodded in confirmation. "Freed, you ok with this?"

"Elden-sama! Wherever you and Laxus-sama go, we will follow as well!"

"Do you even need to ask Freed? He goes along with whatever you and Laxus say. At least we won't be having orange juice as our drinks this time since Laxus isn't around. I'm getting sick of it, to be honest." Evergreen commented.

"No orange juice." Bickslow agreed.

The four of us continued to walk towards our usual haunt where we used to have our meals and relax after our missions. I had rarely stopped by there ever since I left the Thunder God Tribe due to the past conflict between me and Laxus. I cannot wait for Laxus to get back already. It will be fun for the five of us to get back together once again.

"The clouds are looking weird today."

The three of us looked up in the sky at Bickslow's words. The clouds are swirling like a gigantic whirlpool and I can feel some sort of magical signature through the eye of it. They are getting noticeably darker as well.

"Looks kind of pretty, but also deadly at the same time." Evergreen spoke out loud. "Is this cloud formation even natural? I didn't know clouds can appear that way."

"Is it just me, or did the amount of ethernano in the air suddenly got thinner?" Freed said as he looked around. "I think I can feel some of the magic in the air heading towards the centre of whatever shape the clouds took."

Freed's words suddenly got my attention and jolted buried memories.

Unnatural cloud formation that looked like a whirlpool, draining of magic from the atmosphere.

Shit. Just when I thought this is not going to happen.

"Get behind me!" I shouted as I quickly called upon my magic in hopes that whatever I am planning to do can save us from turning into lacrima and stood in front of the three of them.

"Barrier-Make: Fairy's Adamantine Sphere!"

A large golden sphere of barriers encased us in it. This spell is a newly invented one that I only just managed to perform a few days ago. It is one of my best creation that combines my Barrier-Make magic, Fairy Sphere, and also being coated with a layer of Dispel magic at the surface of the barrier. It is one of my strongest defensive spells other than Fairy Gates but the focus of Fairy's Adamantine Sphere is to protect individuals due to its smaller scale while Fairy Gates is used to prevent widespread AOE destruction due to its massive size. In terms of pure defensive capabilities, Fairy's Adamantine Sphere is stronger as this spell uses my barriers as its base but at the same time, imbued with the properties of Fairy Sphere. This combination of powers allows me to create different shapes of barriers with nearly the same defensive powers as Fairy Sphere, and not just, well, a sphere. A sphere is all I can create now, but that should change soon when I get more training in. I still need to work on creating other shapes using this newfound discovery. Fairy Sphere is an absolute defense spell and I haven't encountered anything that is able to best this particular spell in defensive capabilities yet. The downside of Fairy Sphere is that the magic needed in invoking the spell is huge, and I need to find ways to reduce the cost in using it. I found a way to get around this issue by combining it with my Barrier-Make magic and I'm glad it worked out. This spell proved that the properties of Fairy Sphere and Dispel magic can be simultaneously combined with my magic, and this finding will be useful for what I am planning to create in the near future.

I just hope Fairy's Adamantine Sphere will be able to save the three of them standing behind me. The Anima is not an attack but rather, it sucks magic from Earthland into Edolas. I am not even sure if Fairy's Adamantine Sphere will hold as at its very core, the spell is being constructed with magic. The Anima may be able to bypass Fairy Adamantine's Sphere simply by sucking the magic used to construct it.

"Elden-sama! What's going on?!" Freed called out as we are being forcefully sucked into the air.

"I don't know! But whatever it is, it's not good!"

"A large scale attack on the town?! What about the guild?!" Evergreen cried out.

"Let's focus on our own survival first, ya? We are getting sucked into the sky to who knows where! We are in no position to help anyone else!" Bickslow argued back.

The last thing we saw of Magnolia is how it is being sucked into the huge portal in the sky like wisps of smoke as we got forcefully dragged along with it as well.

* * *

"You guys found anything else?"

Bickslow asked when he entered the small abandoned hut which he and his friends had found and converted it into a temporary base for their own use. They had each went out for information gathering on their own and had agreed to meet here after a few hours to share their findings. What they had managed to uncover so far isn't anything good.

"Nothing of note other than the things that we had already found out." Evergreen said dejectedly. "We don't even know who came along with us, if there is any at all."

"If anyone did, we will find out soon enough. Our guild isn't known for being subtle."

Bickslow allowed a small laugh to escape his lips at Elden's attempt to joke in order to lighten the mood.

It has been a few days since the four of them had been violently thrown into another world and landed at the outskirts of the Royal City. From what they found out, this world is known as Edolas, and it appears to be a parallel world with how similar some things are, yet starkly different at the same time. The people they met here shunned them when they saw their guild mark, which baffled their group to no end when they first arrived, and thus they all have to disguise themselves to look different from their usual appearances. Elden is the most collected person in the group and despite how much Bickslow fear this unknown world that seems to be against them, they had managed to remain safe under his leadership. What they lack now is information and power. They are now trying to get over the problem of the lack of information by wandering about the Royal City of Edolas in their disguises and get as much information as possible from the locals. However, there is no way to get around the lack of power yet.

Not a single one of them can use magic in Edolas. Not even their Eye Magic that their team is so proud of is working. Bickslow's Figure Eyes is now unable to see souls like how he is used to, which is very disorienting for him. He is unused to this.

He is scared. Magic had been with him for his whole life and it is now gone. Just like that.

That's not the only shocking fact they found out when they finished freaking out after trying to desperately call upon their magic. In this world, Fairy Tail is a dark guild, the Erza of this world is a part of the Edolas Royal Army and is now probably their enemy. Everything is just wrong here. Freed and Evergreen are equally distraught as well. Elden seems to adjust to this change of circumstances well enough, but it is obvious that he is worried at the state of things, even more so than them. Just two days ago, he had found out that a giant lacrima had appeared in the Royal City on the same day, at around the same time when the four of them were initially dropped unceremoniously from Edolas's sky onto the ground. Luckily the dense foliage on the outskirts of the Royal City cushioned their fall or they would have been turned to paste.

For the giant lacrima to appear at the same time as the four of them is no mere coincidence. There is no such thing as coincidence. That lacrima has to be linked to how Magnolia is sucked into the sky with them and why they are here. The four of them agree on this. According to Elden's speculation, that lacrima _has to be_ Magnolia. Bickslow didn't know how he came to that conclusion, but he doesn't doubt Elden's words. Elden is wise beyond his years and he saved the Thunder God Tribe many times on the numerous dangerous missions they went on together many years back simply by using his intellect to get them out of the most despairing of situations. It would not be impossible for Elden's speculation to be true either, magic can do things that no one can comprehend.

It does not change the fact that now the four of them are stuck here, unable to go back to where they came from, and helpless to save the town and their guild if the giant lacrima is indeed Magnolia.

Even without magic, the four of them are far from helpless. They are the best team in Fairy Tail until the Monster Legion and Team Natsu were formed. However, the Thunder God Tribe is a more well-rounded team given that they are not overly specialised like the Monster Legion or hopeless in doing anything subtle like Team Natsu. In a magic-less state, Freed is still a force to be reckon with in his mastery in using the sword he wields. Evergreen and him are no slouches in hand-to-hand combat either even if they usually stick to long-range attacks with their magic. Elden is a weapons master that gave even Erza a run for her money until she became an S Class mage. The only troublesome thing for Bickslow is that he now has to carry his precious dolls around in a bag instead of how they usually float behind him since he cannot use his magic. How troublesome.

"We need to find a way get our magic back. We cannot do anything in our current condition." Freed said as he sat with his back against the wall.

"There might be others from our guild that came here like how we did." Elden spoke out. "If that is the case, we need to find them."

Evergreen furrowed her brows.

"How are we going to do that? We have been here for-"

Elden suddenly stood up silently on full alert as he gestured for Evergreen to keep quiet. The three of them tensed and got into position as well. The people of this world view them as members of a dark guild, it would not be the first time they are on the run from the Royal Army. Freed had stupidly paraded with his guild mark visible on the back of his hand in public when they first arrived here, attracting the attention of the Royal Army. Their first encounter of the Royal Army was with this world's version of Erza. They nearly didn't make it out alive until Elden did something so stupid and borderline suicidal that actually worked and allowed them to slip out of there.

He can't believe that they had to hide in the sewers that is right underneath the road. While on the run from the mass of soldiers hot on their heels behind them, they had turned around a corner and Elden suddenly lifted up the sewer cap on the ground and jumped in there. The rest of them had no choice but to follow and closed the entrance after them. Somehow, the Royal Army didn't think of checking the sewer system when chasing after them.

The smell around them lingered for an entire day. Evergreen is still bitching about that.

Elden slowly grabbed a metal pole that is about the length of a sword lying beside him and moved cautiously towards the door in silence. The rest of the Thunder God Tribe held their breath as they quietly reached for their own respective weapons, ready to aid Elden if needed.

The door opened from the outside with a loud bang.

"Fucking finally! You know how hard it is to track-"

Elden swung the metal pole like a bat with the greatest force he can muster and it hit the head of the hooded figure with a resounding gong. It sounded oddly like hitting a tin can.

"Ow! Oi! Wait a sec-"

Bickslow threw his dagger with dangerous precision as he aimed to sever the tendons of this intruder. He was the last to return among the group, it is likely this intruder had somehow managed to track him down to locate the temporary base that the Thunder God Tribe is using right now.

The intruder swerved sideways and cocked his head to the side.

And chomped down on the dagger with his teeth before eating it.

"What?"

"I told you to wait a damn sec!" The hooded figure complained as he continued to munch on the dagger before closing the door behind him. Elden rolled his eyes as he threw the metal pole to the hooded figure as well for him to snack on. It's obvious who this person is by now. There's only one person in the entire world that can eat metal as if they are biscuits.

"Gajeel?" Evergreen asked cautiously.

"Damn right it's me! What the hell is the problem with you guys?!"

"You can use magic." Elden stated, ignoring Gajeel's complaint. "The fact that you can eat metal means that your magic somehow remains with you."

"Yea." Gajeel confirmed their suspicions as he removed the hood. "I smelt the scent of you guys all over the Royal City so I have been trying to track you guys for ages. You guys sure moved around quickly. Whenever I thought I had found you guys the whole lot of you just disappeared to somewhere else. You know how hard it is for me to even find a single trace of any one of you?"

Gajeel brought out a small bottle filled with red coloured pills.

"Open your damn mouths."

Elden did not hesitate as he opened his mouth wide and Gajeel threw a pill into it for Elden to swallow. Bickslow is skeptical, but if Elden trust Gajeel, he will too. Despite Gajeel's past, he is now a member of their guild as well. He is a nakama. Nakamas trust each other wholeheartedly.

The Thunder God Tribe will not repeat their mistakes again. This time, they will protect the guild.

"My magic!" Evergreen exclaimed excitedly as she felt the familiar surge of magic that flows within her.

"It's back!" Bickslow yelled excitedly as his dolls finally reanimate themselves back to life and chanted with him.

"Thanks, Gajeel." Elden said with sincerity. "But I don't think time is on our side right now if what I speculated is true. We need to share with each other what we have found out."

Gajeel's face turned gravely serious as he took a seat on an empty wooden barrel.

"Yeah. You guys might want to get comfortable. What I am going to share with you guys is a long story and you guys might not like it."

* * *

 **AN: The Edolas arc had started. Sorry if I gave you guys the wrong impression in the previous chapters that the Edolas arc would not be happening, that wasn't my intention. I just wanted to highlight that the actions Elden took had started to make ripples and changes in the FT world, like how Mira isn't around now at this particular time and the fact that Gildarts had not returned yet. The plot will start to deviate more and more as time progresses, I already have some drastic changes planned out since a long time ago, I just need time to work out the kinks and the specifics, especially on the how. I need better explanations. I hate plot holes and I hate dropping myself into plot holes that I created for myself even more.**

 **On the topic of Edolas, one thought has been bugging me ever since I reread the Edolas arc again and again in preparation for the upcoming few chapters. From what I know, Natsu and co. definitely spent a few days in Edolas, about six to seven days if I recall correctly since I remembered that they took about five days to reach the Royal City. However, whatever happened in Magnolia seemed to be freezed in time, as can be seen when canon Mira and Elfman were still visiting Lisanna's grave and how the townsfolk didn't have any memories of the supposed 'missing time'. However, I was also of the impression from the pieces of information about Edolas shown in the manga that the flow of time is the same for Edolas and Earthland. So, my question is, how did no one from some other place in Earthland find out that Magnolia was missing for about a week? It will be hard to miss the fact that an entire town was gone, right? Surely there would be merchants or the like entering or exiting Magnolia on a daily basis, and no one paid any attention about it?**

 **I'm still scratching my head on this issue as I write about this. I'm just going to add my own interpretation and my take on things if that is the case.**

 **I'm most afraid of writing the Edolas arc, to be honest. It is one of the arc that I am most afraid of writing which is right up there with the Oracion Seis arc. I still don't know if I wrote the Oracion Seis arc properly, I am unsatisfied with how I wrote it, but I don't want to write battles that are pure reenactment of canon fights and Elden shouldn't be taking the fights for himself. The rest of the FT group will never grow into their full potential otherwise. I cannot just give them a sudden power boost either. It just doesn't make any sense.**

 **I'm still not sure what I should really change in the Edolas arc, even if I have a few ideas already in place. The most frustrating thing is that I cannot decide if I should let Mystogan stay or leave Edolas. I like him as a character, and I thought it was a shame for Mashima to let him go like that without expanding even more on him. There has to be more about his power, but the full extent of his abilities wasn't shown. His fight with Laxus in canon was interrupted, he feigned defeat against Dorma Anim to sneak back to the castle and reverse the Anima to end the entire incident, and Jellal who posed as him in the GMG arc only used a few spells of his against Jura, and the spells appeared weak. I'm pretty sure the spells and abilities of an S Class mage will be more than this since the damage wasn't even on Natsu's normal level, for instance. There are probably many hidden abilities of Mystogan that we don't know about which helped him earned his place among the monsters known as S Class mages. Still, that doesn't justify the need of Mystogan in TAOFT after the Edolas arc and trying to write about him will be hard since there is so little information about him in the first place. And can you imagine two Jellals in the same guild? I can't, for whatever reasons, and I don't know why I feel this way.**

 **Well, let me know what you think about the Edolas arc and Mystogan. Maybe I can get some inspiration and ideas from your comments and reviews. Constructive ones, I hope. I had somewhat of a bad time with some of the reviews when I was writing Rekindling Cinders and in a fit of immaturity, I actually lashed out. It's my regret of a lifetime. Is it just me or does the FT community on FFnet love stories more on battles and less on the characterisation? I don't know about you guys, but that's how I feel when I read the stories available about FT on FFnet. I feel that FT readers tend to prefer endings that are more "perfect" and they simply like FT stories purely for the battles. I don't like stories that are purely about the mc getting stronger and filled with training arcs and battles. But that's my preference in stories. Getting better in characterisation is what I am aiming for. I want my characters to have a soul, to be unique, so that when people remembered the stories they read and when they thought of the stories I wrote, they can remember the characters as their own person, not just another oc. It is hard to do so while trying to maintain the interest for the plot and some battles will or may have to be cut out, but I am trying.**

 **No offense if I had somehow offended you. Just throwing out my opinions here. I may very well be the oddball among the vast number of readers.**

 **To be honest, I have never expected TAOFT to gain as much popularity as it did. The only reason why I wrote this story is because I really want to write one on FT, and because the concept of Elden's magic is 'cool'. Really, that's it. I had an idea about the magic I want the oc to use and I just wrote it without much considerations about anything else. I had never planned beyond the Phantom Lord arc for this story initially when I started writing. I don't even know why this story is the most popular one among the three I wrote. In my opinion, there is so many things that I have done wrong with this story, but judging from your unwavering support and the reviews, which are mostly encouraging ones, I must have done something right somewhere. I just don't know what I did right, and I really want to know what I did right and also what I did wrong so I can do a better job in writing this story.**

 **I think I have ranted enough. Thanks for reading up till here so far, but I am really curious about your opinions. I want to continue creating unique stories, but I think I really need to know what you guys feel before the way the story is heading becomes more and more permanent, for the lack of a better word.**

 **I hope you enjoy the story thus far.**


	17. Chapter 17- Save The Guild

Things are so much easier with magic.

"That's one giant ass piece of lacrima in the plaza."

"We can tell, Gajeel." Evergreen said as we all took a ride in a transparent sphere of barriers that is currently floating in the airspace of the Royal City. "What did Mystogan say about you being able to turn them back again?"

Gajeel flexed his arms as he gave a psychotic laugh.

" _Gihihihi_. I just smash them with my Dragon Slayer magic!"

"So, I drop us down there and let you smash it, and hope it turns back into our nakama?" I asked, hoping that the intel Mystogan gave Gajeel is correct. It seems a little too straightforward for some reason. Won't our friends get smashed to pieces from Gajeel's attack?

I shudder when that thought crossed my mind. Mystogan is reliable though, so I think we can trust his words that Gajeel smashing the crystal with his magic is able to turn everyone back to normal.

"That's the whole damn point. It'd better be easy. Can you imagine how much stuffs I have to smash to turn everyone back into normal? This guild is so damn troublesome, I'm eating all the iron I want when we get back to the guild."

"I wonder who that lacrima is made of." Freed mused as we all peered down below from where we are in the sky. "Any idea, Bickslow?"

"I can only see one soul." Bickslow replied as he adopted a thinking pose. "Hard to believe that piece of giant lacrima came only from one person, but it is what my eyes are telling me."

"Maybe it's the Master?"

"Dunno, can't tell exactly. Them turning into lacrima kind of screwed my vision. I can't tell with definite accuracy."

"Right. So as far as we know from Gajeel, Natsu, Wendy, and Lucy, together with Happy and Carla are somewhere in that big castle somehow. I'm going to drop Gajeel down near that lacrima and I'm helping to defend him until he turns the lacrima back into whoever that is. The three of you go to the castle to help the rest of them." I directed the last part to the Thunder God Tribe, who nodded in acknowledgement.

"If only we know where the main lacrima is, then this would be so much easier." Gajeel grumbled as he crossed his arms.

"We will cross the bridge when it comes to that. Come on, let's go."

Freed applied flight runes on himself as him, Evergreen, and Bickslow flew away in the direction of the castle using their own respective magic the moment I dropped my barriers. Gajeel and I nosedived into the ground and landed near the giant lacrima in a huge crash.

I have always wanted to try making a dramatic entrance.

"Shinra Tensei!"

A semicircle dome of barriers that were created around me, the lacrima, and Gajeel expanded outwards at a rapid rate and sent everything and everyone around us flying.

"Gajeel, now!"

Gajeel didn't bother to reply as he smashed at the lacrima with his magic. The lacrima glowed brightly before condensing into the form of Jellal, much to my surprise.

Wasn't Gray or Erza supposed to be part of the lacrima? Canon changed?

"Urgh… what happened?" Jellal rubbed his head with his palm before quickly assessing his surroundings. "Gajeel? El? Where are we?"

"No time to talk! Eat one of these if you wanna survive!"

Gajeel threw a red pill at Jellal, who caught it with his hand. Upon seeing me giving a nod, he gulped down the pill without hesitation.

"I don't feel any different." Jellal commented as he looked at us quizzically. "Is it supposed to do anything?"

"We don't have time to explain." I cut in as I erected a dome of barrier around us. "Listen up. We are somehow transported to a parallel world that is holding the entire Magnolia Town hostage together with the guild. They have been converted to lacrima and only our Dragon Slayers are able to turn everyone back to normal with their magic. Can you go and help them? Just bring Gajeel with you and fly towards the castle. I will hold off the army here."

Jellal's eyes widened momentarily but he regained his composure soon enough. As expected from someone who was once part of the Wizard Saints.

"I can do that. Don't worry, we will save them."

I immediately cast another Shinra Tensei to disperse the enemies around us, and Jellal took the opportunity to grab onto Gajeel and flew towards the castle at high speeds.

"-doesn't he look like the second prince?"

"-I thought he disappeared-"

"The guy with the barriers looks like the crown prince too!"

What the hell are they rambling on about?

"Prince!" One of the guards that were attacking us cried out. "What are you doing! You just let the attackers escape!"

 _Prince? Who? Me?_

"He's no prince."

A cold but scarily familiar voice spoke over all the crowd and we all turned towards the source of the disturbance.

A spitting image of me in expensive and royal garb looked down upon me from where he is perched on a legion that is hovering in the sky. On his right arm is a silver shield with the Edolas insignia emblazoned on it.

There is an Edolas version of me?!

"This guy is an imposter from Earthland. Don't get yourselves fooled. Go after the ones who went to infiltrate the castle." Edo me said in an authoritative tone as he jumped down onto the ground and looked at me.

"I will deal with the imposter."

" **Yes Sir!** "

With that, the once demoralised and scattered Edolas Royal Army reorganised themselves quickly and ran back in an orderly manner to the castle. I tried to stop them, only for Edo me to get in the way.

The huge silver shield was right up in my face and I barely had time to react, only managing to call upon my barriers at the last second. The force of the shield bash still sent me flying though.

 _Fast! Edo me is so damn fast!_

"The city is too small. Let's have some fun outside, shall we?"

The shield opened up like a door and from it came chains that wrapped around me. Edo me then began to spin me in circles like a cowboy with a lasso before flinging me towards the outskirts of the city.

This is going to be such a pain.

I managed to cushion my fall with a sphere of barriers surrounding me, and Edo me stood on the opposite end of the clearing that we ended up in. It's only the two of us here. Edo me had probably chose this place as our battleground to prevent the collateral damage from affecting the city. The both of us began to size each other up. If what I knew about canon Edolas is true, then Edo me should be on the same level of strength as I am.

"So that's your power? Barrier magic? It's kind of lame, but I think it fits too. I use a shield after all." Edo me waved his shield at me as he spoke the last part. "Are you a reincarnated soul as well?"

I didn't reply, but the shock on my face must have revealed it all. I had just thought that this world's Elden is someone who didn't have his soul invaded. I had thought that he is the true Elden of this world.

There's another me from a parallel universe that got himself reincarnated into Edolas?!

"I take it as a yes then." Edo me mused as he stood with one hand on his hip in a nonchalant manner. "I've always wondered if there is an Earthland me when I first ended up here and if so, whether I would meet my counterpart. I was so excited when my men and Erza both reported to me that they found someone suspicious that greatly resembled me a few days back. I don't think I am disappointed."

"I take it that there is also a Fairy Tail manga series from where you came from." I replied carefully, still trying to get over my shock. "If that's the case, why are you helping Edolas?"

Edo me gave me a huge smirk as he gestured to himself. To be more specific, the clothes that he is wearing that no doubt label him as royalty.

"You still don't get it? I _am_ the Prince of Edolas. In fact, I am the Crown Prince of Edolas. Of course I will help my country."

"You fool!" I bristled as my magic responded to my emotions. "Don't you understand where the so-called unlimited magic is coming from?! You are trying to kill my friends and use them as an energy source!"

"I know." Edo me replied as he appeared totally unfazed by my outburst. "But do you think I care? They are not _my_ comrades. They are not _my_ friends. They are not the people that _I_ grew up with. Magic is running out in this world and as the Prince, I have to find ways to allow my people to continue to enjoy using magic. That's my responsibility."

I narrowed my eyes as I prepared my magic. I had never thought that Edo me is so infuriating to deal with. I had thought that if he is another version of me, he could understand where I am coming from. I was wrong.

"I am going to rescue my guild and my town." I said as I took a stance, my magic swirling around me in response to my emotions. "I won't show mercy to anyone who stands in my way. Even if it is another me."

Edo me gave a bloodthirsty grin as he placed his shield in front of him in a defensive manner.

"Now that's what I want to see. Come, Earthland me. Show me what you are made of."

I sent him flying back with an invisible wall of Shinra Tensei before leaping after him with Susanoo Stage II already manifested and its bow loaded with an arrow. I quickly rained arrows down on his location and floated in midair, waiting to see what Edo me is capable of.

When the dust cleared, I realised that Edo me had merely used his shield to defend himself and remained unharmed. He gave me a grin, before pointing the tip of the shield in my direction. The tip morphed into a cannon and began to charge up a ridiculous amount of magical energy.

"You just tested my defense, now I am testing yours."

A concentrated beam of energy shot at me and I quickly flew away from it while returning fire. The two of us continued our skirmish in this manner as we tried to blast each other to pieces.

"While we are at it, do you mind if I ask if you remember anything from your previous life?" Edo me asked as he blocked my arrows before returning fire with his cannon-shield. "It's not everyday that I get the chance to meet another reincarnated soul."

"Nothing much. Only thing I remembered are various manga and anime series along with a few other trivial stuffs. I don't even remember my previous name or what I did or even what I used to look like." I answered as I used Fairy's Aegis to block a particularly powerful shot from Edo me.

"Damn. It was the same for me too. And here I thought this is a chance for me to know more about what I was before I found myself here."

"How were you reincarnated?" I continued the Q&A session as I now sent out waves of senbonzakura to drown my counterpart. "For me, I just suddenly found myself in this body after the parents of the original body got themselves killed in a bandit raid."

" _Wow_! Susanoo and now Senbonzakura! You are interesting, other me!" Edo me complimented before he another huge blast of condensed magic that vapourised my petals. He leapt up into the sky before chains shot out of his shield and wrapped around Susanoo, not allowing it to move.

"Heave ho!"

With an unbelievable amount of strength, Edo me swung me and Susanoo to the other side of the clearing. How did he get that abnormal amount of strength?!

"Kind of similar for me too." Edo me said as the chains grew spikes and tried to dig into Susanoo, and I start to realise that the chains are actually capable of _sucking magic away_ when the construct starts to fall apart.

This is bad.

I quickly dismissed Susanoo and jumped out of the chains before they could get to me. This is definitely not the full depth of Edo me's powers. I need to know more about his capabilities before I can commit to anything.

"Aw man, can't you just sit still and let me suck you dry?" Edo me complained as the chains retreated back into the shield. "Anyway, as I was saying, I just woke up one day and found myself in the body of a seven years old and the older brother to Jellal, or maybe I should say Mystogan, since that is what he introduced himself to you guys as."

I gave my counterpart an odd look.

"You and Mystogan are brothers?! You don't even look alike!"

Edo me shrugged, and it felt a little weird to see a carbon copy of me copying my usual habit. That's my trademark gesture damn it!

"Hey, my Dad in this world is a King. A King tends to have harems, you know? Polygamy is apparently a thing here among the royalties of Edolas."

"So, you and Mystogan are half-blood brothers." I deduced, taking the momentary ceasefire as a chance to regain some lost magic. It is hard to replenish my magic by absorbing magic from the atmosphere in this ethernano-sparse world, but it can't be helped.

"Yep. Never knew who our mothers were though. Mine apparently died while giving birth to me and Jellal's was killed after she angered Dad somehow many years back. Jel escaped, and then got picked up by Pantherlily. You should know what happened next."

"You still call such a vile human being like him your Dad?" I bit out in contempt. "He doesn't even view people as humans. At least if what is portrayed in canon was correct."

"Hey, say what you want about him." Edo me replied as he took a stance with the face of his shield facing me. "But if there is one thing nobody can choose no matter which lifetime they are experiencing and what they are reincarnated as, it is their parents. No one can choose who their parents are. He can be a cruel jerk, but he still treated me well."

Susanoo roared to life around me once again as I prepared for another bout with Edo me. I need to find a way to stop him. Right now, it is just a battle of attrition to see who runs out of juice first, and seeing how Edo me fired off those beams of condensed magic, I am willing to bet that his magic tool has just as much magic as my reserves, if not more.

I need to change the tide of the battle.

"You say you fight for your guild." Edo me stated as his eyes suddenly turned uncharacteristically sharp. "I fight for my country and my people. They are my responsibility now."

A black coloured magic circle suddenly appeared below me and I found myself pressed onto the ground. However, Susanoo managed to resist it somewhat.

He altered gravity? The magic effect got past my barriers and affected me?!

"Anima."

I watched in shock as the shield opened up like a door and began to forcefully suck all magic in the vicinity into the shield even before I could react. Susanoo quickly lost its form and got sucked into the black hole of a shield as wisps of ethernano. I tried to fight back or defend myself, but the sudden extraction of magic rendered any actions that I did useless and I can feel myself dropping in exhaustion from the sudden loss of magic in my body.

Damn it! His shield has the same capability as the Anima! It is a mini Anima in itself!

"Sleep well, Earthland me. The next time we meet, we will be experiencing an eternal supply of magic and you, shall be its witness."

The last thoughts I had was the bitter realisation that I had failed to save my ragtag family.

* * *

"What's going on?! Aren't the exceed supposed to be angels or gods to the humans? Is this a rebellion?!" Lucy exclaimed as Happy ferried her through the air and they watched as beams of light turned the large group of exceed soldiers into lacrima. She's not cut out for this kind of danger! What is she supposed to do?!

"Never mind that! Let's go save Wendy and Natsu!" Carla said as she led them back into the castle to save the two Dragon Slayers.

The Celestial Spirit mage ran alongside the two exceeds as they infiltrated the castle once more, searching for clues that might lead them to their captured friends. Her hands are still bound by a pair of magic-sealing handcuffs. If only she could get this off, maybe she could summon Virgo and have her find Natsu and Wendy in no time.

"Watch out!"

Happy's warning gave Lucy just enough time to jump out of the way as a spear flew towards her previous position. That was too close!

"Eh?"

The spear began to glow brightly and the three of them were suddenly caught in an explosion that originated from the spear, blasting them back and leaving them wheezing for air from where they are trying to get up from the floor.

"Not bad, still alive after taking a hit from my magic, eh?"

Edo Erza walked in with a group of soldiers behind her and picked up her spear calmly. She was about to continue speaking, but a scream cut her off.

 _That's Wendy's voice!_

"You… What are you doing to Wendy?!" Lucy said as she struggled to get up, intending to protect her friends if necessary even if her magic is currently still sealed away by the handcuffs.

"Taking the magic we need for code ETD, obviously." Edo Erza said with an evil smile on her face and Lucy _hates_ it. Erza's beautiful face shouldn't make an expression like _that_. The Erza she knows is kind and someone who cares for their friends!

"Stop it, please!" Carla begged from where she lay on the floor, tears streaming down her face in regret. "Give Wendy back!"

"Oh, don't worry about it." Edo Erza gave a casual spin of her spear before pointing the tip at Carla.

"You are going to die here anyway."

"I won't let you touch Carla!" Happy, who had somehow pushed past his pain, stood protectively in front of Carla with his arms spread open and blocking Edo Erza's path.

"Then you first."

Edo Erza's spear descended upon the two exceeds despite Carla shouting for Edo Erza to stop. Happy closed his eyes as he waited for the inevitable pain that he will no doubt be experiencing before he breathes his last.

At least he can die knowing that he had tried his best to protect Carla.

Right at that moment, a loud explosion tore through the ranks of the group of soldiers that Edo Erza brought along, causing her spear to stop its descent.

"What?!"

Edo Erza's question was answered as the last soldier of her group was blasted into the walls of the castle. A rapier-like sword was thrust at her neck from the smoke which Edo Erza managed to block just in time with her spear. Edo Erza jumped upwards, only to be met with wooden dolls that blasted beams of magical energy at her which pushed her back.

A cloud of sparkling dust swirled around her and Edo Erza immediately put herself on high alert. It proved to be the correct decision as the dust combusted into another explosion, forcing Edo Erza away from Lucy and the two exceeds.

"I can't believe it, these guys are going to kill them knowing that they are from our guild?"

Lucy watched in a mixture of joy, relief, and amazement as a group of familiar people emerged from the smoke. She doesn't know how they managed to turn themselves back from being a lacrima, but she couldn't bring herself to care.

There's hope! Fairy Tail can be saved!

"There's no way we will forgive those who raise their hands against members of our guild."

"You do know that we once tried doing that, right?"

The wooden dolls chanted the same remark over again and again as Bickslow walked right up to Lucy and helped her up. Freed wrote some runes on her handcuffs with his sword, and the handcuffs unlocked themselves instantly.

"That's why we will protect the guild this time to atone for our sins. We will not let Elden-sama down."

"What Freed said." Evergreen stated nonchalantly while fanning herself with a small fan that she always brings along with her.

"I never thought that I will see another version of Erza." Jellal spoke as he too emerged from the smoke together with Gajeel. The Dragon Slayer kicked at the head of a fallen soldier who is still groaning on the floor in pain, knocking the unfortunate soldier out immediately.

"Why? Can't bring yourself to hit your girlfriend look-alike?" Evergreen teased as Jellal's face turned red from embarrassment.

"T-That's not it! It's n-not what you guys are thinking about! Th-There's nothing going on between me and Erza!"

The rest of the Fairy Tail group rolled their eyes. There's definitely something going on between the two of them.

Another group of soldiers ran up to the group of reunited Fairy Tail mages, charging in with their magic weapons.

" **Arrest them**!"

"Just in time." Freed said in a cold tone as he walked onwards to the incoming group of soldiers. He wrote some runes in the air using the tip of his sword before directing a question at the soldiers, who are now about ten meters away from him.

"Where are our friends who were turned into lacrima?"

The group of soldiers were suddenly forced to stop in their tracks and collapsed on the floor gasping for breath. Lucy can only stare on in bewilderment. Did Freed just took out the air within that small area using only his runes he wrote in a few short seconds?

Edo Erza had managed to escape the confinements of Freed's runes and lunged forward to attack him, only to find herself face to face with Jellal. The resulting shock wave from their clash shook the entire area that the Fairy Tail mages found themselves in.

"Go on ahead! I will hold her here!"

The rest of them didn't waste anymore time. Evergreen grabbed Lucy and pulled her along and Bickslow picked up the exceeds before they exited the area.

"To think that I will face the Earthland's version of our banished Prince in combat." Edo Erza mused as she skidded backwards from the clash of blows with Jellal. "This ought to be interesting."

Jellal said nothing as he stood unmoving from his previous position, but the look in his eyes shows how serious he is in treating this issue.

"I'm the commander of Edolas Kingdom's Second Magical Warfare Corps, Erza Knightwalker." Edo Erza stated as she took on another battle stance with her spear.

"I am Jellal Fernandes. A sinner and a mage of Fairy Tail."

Edo Erza smirked as the spear in her hands began to glow again.

"Let me see what you are made of. Silfarion!"

Jellal barely dodged Edo Erza's attacks as she suddenly gained a burst of speed that is able to match his Meteor. The two of them continued to fight in this manner as they try to outdo the other in a contest of speed.

A punch from Jellal caught Edo Erza in her gut and she was thrown backwards from the impact. She got up quickly before her spear changed its form again.

"Mel Force!"

A vacuum wave of condensed wind knocked Jellal out from his trajectory as he analysed Edo Erza's capabilities.

 _'Requip? No. It's the shape of the weapon that changed. Is that what fuels Knightwalker's abilities?'_

"Explosion!"

Jellal dashed out of the blast radius of another huge explosion as Edo Erza's spear changed its form again and released blasts after blasts of magical energy at him. Deciding that he had enough, Jellal whizzed through the air before his palm caught Edo Erza's face, and he proceeded to drag her into the air in this manner and threw her far away from the castle.

"The castle's too small for our fight. Let's battle here."

Edo Erza managed to cushion her fall as she landed on the ground of the castle's courtyard. Jellal sped down from above and almost crushed her with the force that came from his speed when he kicked at her. Luckily for Edo Erza, she had managed to dodge that attack, but she now know how strong Earthland Jellal is.

She can feel her blood stirring in excitement at the prospect of fighting such a worthy and powerful foe.

The both of them said nothing as they opt to continue their fight and engage each other in a series of blows. The fate of Edolas and Earthland Fairy Tail hangs in the balance and they both know that the outcome of this fight can possibly tilt the scales in the favour for the organisation that they each fight for.

Only one of them will walk out of this battle a winner.

* * *

"So where the hell is this King guy?!"

"Well, since he is a King, logically speaking he should be in some sort of important looking place."

Lucy walked with the Thunder God Tribe and Natsu as they tried to navigate their way through the castle, but the confusing layout of the building is making things hard for them. Happy had stated that he knew where the giant lacrima that their friends had turned into is, and he had departed with Gajeel to help save their friends. Wendy and Carla decided to head back to Extalia to warn the exceeds about the Edolas kingdom and code ETD.

And that leaves her stuck with the pyromaniac with no notion of common sense and the trio of mages who still scares her a little after their display at the Battle of Fairy Tail.

The Thunder God Tribe are frightening foes to go up against, but they are also reliable allies to have. From what she knew from them, the three of them weren't turned into lacrima thanks to Elden's magic although it didn't prevent them from being sucked into Edolas through the Anima. That in itself is surprising.

What surprises her even more is the level of respect and reverence the three of them held Elden at. It seems as if they hold Elden at the same level of respect as Laxus. Did they have some sort of history together? Come to think about it, she doesn't know much about the Thunder God Tribe at all.

"Tell me that this is an illusion and that I am not seeing what I am seeing right now."

Everyone stared at the sight in front of them, and then closed their eyes and count to ten before opening them again. Evergreen's right. There's no way something like that can be within a castle, but here it is, defying common sense and is right in front of them.

"An amusement park, really?" Bickslow asked no one in particular as he spoke in a disbelieving tone.

"Let's look for the King here!"

"You just want to go in to play, Natsu."

Despite that, the group of five people entered the amusement park. None of them currently have any better ideas on how they can look for the King anyway.

A large wooden Viking ship flew towards them from nowhere. It would have crushed them into paste if it wasn't for Bickslow destroying the ship with a laser beam from his dolls.

"Seems like we have our work cut out for us, Sugarboy."

"Hmm? We just have to kill them, Hughes. Shouldn't be too hard."

Hughes simply pointed a small handheld tool that looks like a wand at another large wooden Viking ship and sent it crashing towards the Fairy Tail mages again. Bickslow quickly stood in front of the group and Hughes watched in bafflement as the ship suddenly came to a halt.

And then swiftly crashed into him.

"I will handle this guy, the rest of you go on ahead! My Human Possession can deal with his magic by transferring souls between the objects here!"

"Hmm~~ I am afraid that I cannot allow all of you to escape."

The group suddenly found themselves sinking into the ground. How did the ground liquefy?

"Dark Ecriture: Repel!"

Freed inscribed some runes onto himself and the group saw the liquid ground being repelled around Freed and allowed him to free himself. He did the same for the rest of them, who quickly got out of their confinement.

"Freed, leave this to me. Your skills will be more useful in saving the guild."

"Ever, I can-"

"I will win this. Don't worry about it."

Freed gave a glance back at the man who wears a disgusting _pink_ armour before looking back at Evergreen. That man is no doubt the one responsible for trapping them in liquefied ground.

"Alright, but be careful."

Sugarboy raised his double-edged blade but Evergreen interrupted him before he can do anything else.

"Fairy Machine Gun: Leprechaun!"

A torrent of energy needles forced Sugarboy to run for cover as he aborted his attempt to detain Freed, Natsu, and Lucy.

"Hughes, a little help here!"

A pony from the nearby merry-go-round detached itself and stood in the way of Evergreen's attack, saving Sugarboy from being riddled with holes.

"That blade of his seems to be able to liquify objects." Bickslow spoke up as he walked to stand by Evergreen's side. "And that other guy's abilities seem to let him control any nearby objects. What a pain."

Evergreen smirked as she took off her glasses.

"We cannot lose now, not when the entire guild is at stake. We need to end this as fast as possible. What do you say, Bickslow?"

"Hell yeah."

Bickslow took off his visor as well as they both looked at their opponents. They are a little too far for them to make proper eye contact now, but that will change when they engage these Edolas creeps in battle later.

It's time to show Edolas what the Thunder God Tribe is really capable of.

* * *

 **AN: Right, the long-awaited chapter that you guys have been waiting and bugging me for. Sorry for the wait. I have no excuses other than the usual schoolwork, writer's block, and lack of motivation to write anything for TAOFT. My exams have ended, but I got myself an internship that starts next week so I won't be able to produce chapters as frequent as I like it to be. But at least I will still have some time to write something out at night.**

 **I'm actually glad for the temporary hiatus since it allowed me time to properly plan out the entire Edolas storyline. I wasn't planning on introducing an Edolas El initially but I'm glad I did. I won't spoil the next chapter for you. So go on ahead and read it.**

 **As usual, I hoped that you guys enjoyed reading this chapter.**


	18. Chapter 18- Elden and Elden

"Oho, wake up already? I was expecting for you to be out of it a little longer."

I blinked myself awake as I took in my surroundings. This seems to be a prison cell. This means that I got myself captured.

"Don't bother. These cuffs restrain your magic and won't come off unless you somehow managed to break them."

I gave Edo me an annoyed look as he just sat in a corner of the cell we are in while drinking some expensive wine from a wine glass. He even had the guards prepared a set of expensive table and chair for him to sit and use, complete with wine, food, and all.

He is definitely doing this on purpose to annoy me. Why the hell is Edo me so damn annoying?!

"Hey, I just wanna be friendly to someone who is me, yet not me. Don't give me that look." Edo me spoke as he munched on a piece of garlic bread. He is purposely mocking the situation I'm in, that has to be it.

"Give me back my guild and my town and turn them back to normal, then we can be friends."

"No can do. I can't change my father's mind, and I don't plan on rebelling him right now either. I'm not stupid like your Mystogan. If he wanted to rebel, there are better ways to go about doing it instead of being a wandering mage in Earthland."

That comment piqued my curiosity.

"Better ways? How so?"

Edo me gave me an eyeroll before sipping on his wine glass.

"You think I'm dumb enough to tell you how to stop the entire thing?"

"Can't blame me for trying." I countered as I try to buy more time by engaging Edo me in a conversation, hoping that he isn't aware of what I am trying to do.

"Have you encountered this world's Fairy Tail?" I asked as I fiddled with my cuffs with my hands behind my back. I am almost there.

"Well." Edo me had a thoughtful expression on his face before continuing his speech. "I was once part of Edolas's Fairy Tail."

"What?"

"Hey, that was before magical guilds were outlawed and I had nothing better to do in the castle. My father didn't really care what I did anyway so long as it is for the benefit of Edolas. So, I went to check out this world's Fairy Tail. They are a fun bunch, but a little suicidal."

"Ok." I said as I tried to digest this news. "And in the end you decided help your father with his crazy plans instead of your guild?"

"I tried to convince Fairy Tail to join the Royal Army when magical guilds were outlawed. They can be their own division with some form of autonomy, so technically Fairy Tail can still exist, only as a subsidiary of the Royal Army. It was the only way I could think of that can satisfy both my father and the guild. But they are _Fairy Tail_ , so when they rejected my offer, I wasn't surprised. I left the guild after that."

"I'm actually glad that I'm not reincarnated here in Edolas." I muttered. "Can't imagine life without Fairy Tail now."

"Hey, now is your turn to share about your life in Earthland. Don't worry, no one is here and listening to us, so just share everything. I'm curious what Earthland is really like since I have never been there."

I had finished whatever I had been trying to do discreetly by now. I just need a distraction.

"Really? Then who's that out there?" I asked as I gestured with my head towards the outside of the cell.

"Huh? Who?"

Edo me turned to look outside and I immediately broke through the cuffs with my magic and Shinra Tensei'd my Edolas counterpart through several walls.

Revenge is sweet, and best served cold.

"What the?! How?!"

"I store extra magic on my body with runes. The magic restraining properties of your handcuffs doesn't apply to the runes for some reason." I replied as I bombard Edo me with invisible blocks of barriers.

Edo me clicked his tongue as he tried to defend himself from attacks that he couldn't see. The tip of his shield morphed into a large sword and he gave a circular slash, destroying everything around him.

"You got me there, I will give you that."

"You haven't seen everything yet. Barrier punch!"

A large fist made of barriers crashed into Edo me and pushed him out of the castle. He freefall for a while before summoning chains out of his shield and swung himself to safety on the ground below. I went after him and immediately began firing arrows with Susanoo.

Edo me unleashed his chains once more on my Susanoo but I willed it away before the chains can latch onto it. I flew around at high speeds away from his chains. Edo me's fighting style seems to thrive on stealing magic from his foes.

"Heh. I never expected for you to be able to break free from the handcuffs."

"I never expected for your abilities to be so damn annoying." I retorted as we both clashed in a series of blows in close combat before pulling apart once more. "What the hell is your shield anyway? It doesn't work like a shield."

"I just wanted to mimic Captain America initially when I first started to design the concept behind it." Edo me admitted as he took another stance with the shield before charging in again. "I like the concept of having a shield."

"That makes the two of us then. I am the shield of my guild." I replied as I unleashed senbonzakura on him, forcing him to back off.

Another big explosion happened in the distance, catching both our attention. I saw a heavily armoured mecha with the shape of a dragon wrecking havoc, destroying everything in the vicinity.

"That is…"

"The Dorma Anim. I never thought that he will really use it. Dad must be getting desperate. You Earthland mages are really something else."

I stare at the large figure of the Dorma Anim. Such a strong and powerful weapon must have been made of the best materials this world has to offer. Maybe…

"Hey, by any chance, is that Dorma Anim made up of Maginium or something similar? Metals with magic-resistant properties but also able to hold magic for very long periods of time?" I directed this question to Edo me, who is actually polite enough to hold back from attacking me while I was busy admiring the Dorma Anim. Never thought that he actually abide by some sort of honour code.

"I don't know what Maginium is, but yeah, Dorma Anim is indeed made of something like that. How did you know?"

I gave a sharkish grin at Edo me. This just solved one of my most important problems.

" _Perfect_. Sorry, but our battle will have to be put on hold. I need to get my hands on something. See you later."

"What are you talking ab- Hey! Get back here!"

* * *

 _I don't want that kind of infinite magic. I don't want Lily to die. I don't want that!_

 _I just want everyone to be safe and happy!_

It was with these thoughts that forced Coco to continue running despite the wounds on her legs. What happened to the King? What happened to all her friends? Why had everyone changed? Is it because of the infinite magic?

If that is the case, Edolas is better off without magic. She had never really understood all the complicated political and magical stuffs anyway. She is a simple girl. All she wants is for everyone to be happy.

She missed those happy days where everything is simpler. She missed the Second Prince. He had always understood her. The Crown Prince is fine too. She knew that beneath all that nonchalant and carefree attitude that he always portrayed himself as, he had never truly stood on the King's side. Funnily enough, the King, the Crown Prince, and the Second Prince had never seen eye to eye with other on anything even if they are all each of them had left as a family.

That's so sad.

But where can she run to? Byro is after her. She has no idea if the Crown Prince will help her. The Second Prince is a mysterious person, but the crown prince brings the definition of mysterious to a whole new level. He always told enough to satisfy you, but never enough to let you know who he truly is.

He is the one that reassures her the most, but also the one that scares her the most. He has Edolas's best interests in his heart, no doubt about it, but she never got a good read on him. Many people thought that they knew him well, but it is these people that never truly got to know the Crown Prince at all.

Coco thinks that no one truly knows who he is. He's planning something, that much is obvious to her even if somehow, no one else realised it. But _what_ is he planning?

"Wah!"

Coco cried out when she collided with a busty blonde. She held the key that she stole from the King close to her, the same key that is crucial to activating the cannon.

The busty blonde is an Earthlander! What should she do?!

"Lucy! You alright?"

A pink hair man, along with a man with long green hair ran up to the blonde woman, who waved off their concerns.

"I'm fine." She said as she stood back up on her feet. The blonde woman took a good look at Coco's legs, which had suffered severe burns from the King's magical tool earlier when she stole the key.

"What happened to your legs? Your injuries are awful!"

Why? Why would an Earthlander care whether she is injured or not? They are enemies! But then…

"Help… Help me!" Coco cried out in a desperate plea. The cannon absolutely cannot be activated! Lily would die if they activate it! He's still at the site where the lacrima is!

" _Hah_ … _Hah_ … Give me the key now!"

Byro, who had already caught up to Coco, demanded as he panted for breath. Coco cringed up in fear. Byro had never been kind to those who opposed him.

"Key? Why are you after my keys?! I'm definitely not giving them to someone like _you_!"

This blonde woman is definitely misunderstanding the situation.

"Heck yeah, Luce! You tell him!"

"Let's just finish this guy and get on with it. I cannot fail Elden-sama."

"Lighten up, would you?" Natsu retorted back at Freed as his fists caught fire. Lucy held a golden key in hand as she pointed it at Byro.

"Freed's right, we shouldn't waste anymore time. Open! Door of the Golden Bull: Taurus!"

With a loud bellow, the celestial spirit appeared for battle, much to the amazement of Coco and Byro, who had never witness something like this before.

"Go!"

"Moooooooooo!"

The brutal swing of Taurus's axe had Byro scrambling for cover, but he kept his cool despite the initial surprise.

"Flame Liquid!"

Throwing a magical vial that is able to combust violently upon activation, the subsequent explosion caught the celestial spirit and sent it flying backwards. Byro grinned. There's no way a ragtag group of Earthland mages will be able to beat the Royal Army and their magic.

"Thanks for the meal!"

 _What?!_

Byro watched in absolute bafflement as the pink hair man gobble up the flames with a satisfied grin on his face.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Byro was sent reeling in the air and landed in a heap. Just what kind of preposterous magics is this that these Earthland mages wield?! _Eating fire_?! This doesn't even make any sense!

"Dark Ecriture: Slash"

A blade of condensed magic slashed at Byro, who managed to evade it at the last instant.

"Dark Ecriture: Pain"

A set of runes stuck on Byro, who immediately fell on the floor screaming in pain. _What is this?!_

"Healing Liquid!"

Byro managed to drink a vial of healing liquid despite all the pain and immediately felt the pain vanish. He cannot afford to underestimate these Earthland mages any longer. He needs to get the key back!

Byro whipped out the Octopus Liquid but paused in his tracks a second later. This battle is not something that can be won with just the Octopus Liquid. The three Earthland mages are too strong for the Octopus Liquid to be of any real use.

He put back the Octopus Liquid and brought out another vial of liquid that glows an eerie green. He saw Coco's eyes widening upon seeing that liquid.

"Byro! Don't drink that! You will die!"

Byro gave one last thoughtful glance at Coco and then back at the Earthland mages. He had made his decision.

All the work. All the blood, sweat, and tears. All the sacrifices that each of his friends had made. It is all for this moment.

"FOR EDOLAS AND INFINITE MAGIC!"

"Please! Stop Byro! Don't let him drink that!"

Coco's plea seems to lift a spell in the narrow corridor that the five of them had found themselves in and Natsu, Lucy, and Freed immediately sprang into action to stop him.

It is too late.

Right before their very eyes, Byro began to undergo a drastic transformation. He gave a painful scream as his body began to enlarge and grow. Dark brown fur began to grow throughout his body and his fingers began to transform into sharp claws. His face began to warp into something canine like as he grew a snout and his teeth became fangs.

Byro howled the moment he completes his transformation and gave a mighty swing of his arms that forced the Fairy Tail mages back.

Byro had transformed into a two-legged werewolf.

"What the hell?" Natsu yelled out as he dodged a swipe of the werewolf's claws.

"That is Byro's Werewolf Liquid." Coco quickly explained from where she is sitting on the ground, her legs are too mangled to support her anymore. "In this form, Byro will gain immense strength and physical capabilities although all that is left in his mind are instincts and the driving force that cause him to decide to transform in the first place. In this case, he will want to get the key back at all costs since that was why he decided to transform. Furthermore, all injuries he suffered will heal in an instant. That's not all though."

"Like hell I care!"

Natsu roared and began to pummel the werewolf with his fists in a large volume of fire. It worked for a few seconds, but the werewolf then caught his fists and then delivered a punch that sent Natsu skidding back.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

A huge blast of flames exploded onto Byro but to everyone's surprise and to Coco's fear, Byro just withstood the attack like nothing had happened.

"The most terrifying part of this transformation is that this form allows Byro to evolve. He can evolve on the spot during his battle to help him overcome his enemies. He just evolved to withstand your flames."

True to Coco's words, the fur of the werewolf now has a different shine to it. Natsu's flames didn't even singe it.

"Key… KEY!"

"Why is he so obsessed with my keys?!"

"It's not your keys that he wants. It's this." Coco said as she held out the key that she stole for the Fairy Tail mages to see.

"This is the key that is able to save your friends."

"For real?"

Byro lunged at them but Freed put up a barrier with his runes to block his onslaught.

"Natsu! Lucy! Take the girl and go! I will hold him off! Save the guild!"

"But Freed! There's no way-"

"I will win." Freed said resolutely as he began to write more runes to sustain the barrier. "We cannot afford to lose."

"We will leave this to you then!" Natsu said as he grabbed Coco and ran off in another direction with Lucy following behind.

"Dark Ecriture: Disaster!"

Large number of wounds began to appear on the werewolf which made it howl in pain. Freed's joy was short-lived, however, as the wounds began to heal immediately. The werewolf became as good as new in just a few short seconds.

 _You've got to be kidding me._

A swipe from the werewolf disrupted Freed's thoughts and threw him backwards. Freed crashed through several walls before coming to a stop.

Freed grimaced. There's no way he can win this battle if he doesn't go all out. To fight a monster, you have to first be a monster yourself.

Only one option left.

"Dark Ecriture: Darkness"

Freed felt himself transforming the moment he inscribed the runes on his body, turning into a demonic creature within a second.

"Dark Ecriture: Wings"

Wings appeared on his back and Freed immediately flew to engage his foe in a series of blows. If what the girl said was true, then it would make sense that the only way to beat this human-turned-creature is to defeat it in one attack. An attack so strong that it wouldn't be able to heal up the injuries or have the time to evolve to counter it.

"Darkness Breath!"

Freed unleashed a highly destructive tornado of dark energy at the werewolf that sent it spiralling in the air before it righted itself and landed on the ground. Freed can already see the body of the werewolf modifying itself and its skin growing tougher.

This werewolf is a menace, and this would be one of his hardest battles that he had took part in to date. His fight with Mirajane was tough too, but never were the stakes as high as now.

It's not just his life that is at stake here. The fate of their entire guild rests upon their shoulders.

"For Edolas! For the King!"

The werewolf yelled those words in a beastly cry as it lunged at Freed once more at high speeds as Freed conjured runes that shackled the werewolf onto a nearby wall. He is already hesitant to refer to this creature as a human. It definitely doesn't act like one anymore. All that is left of this creature are instincts that will force it to fight until it achieved its objectives or if it is dead.

"I admire your loyalty and bravery, but I cannot falter. If we were not on opposite sides, maybe we could have been friends."

The werewolf broke through the runes using pure strength alone. It sucked in a deep breath and charged up a massive amount of magical energy between its opened jaws.

"RRRAAAGGGHHH!"

The werewolf unleashed a huge beam of condensed magic at Freed with a bestial roar as Freed unleashed his own attack.

"Darkness Vacuum Bomb!"

Freed threw a sphere of dark energy, a sphere so dark that it is void of any light. The sphere met the werewolf's attack head-on and began to suck in the magic from the werewolf's attack.

"Detonate!"

With a snap of his fingers, the dark sphere exploded in a huge flash of light that blasted the portion of the castle that they are at and annihilate it completely. The clear blue of sky can now be seen as Freed flew up high and search for his foe with wary eyes.

His caution paid off as the werewolf somehow managed to leap up to him and tried to maul him alive. Freed caught the werewolf's arm and used a shoulder throw that sent it speeding down back to the ground in a resounding crash.

Freed flew after the werewolf as he began to charge up his next attack.

"Darkness Flare Bomb!"

Another sphere of dark energy appeared and created a huge wave of pressure that forced the werewolf deeper into the ground and crashed into the deeper level of the castle. Freed flew in after it and realised that he is back where he had left his friends earlier.

"Freed?"

"Ever? Bickslow?"

True to his words, his long-time comrades appeared by his side with their foes on the other far end of the amusement park. The werewolf slowly got up as Sugarboy and Huges went to stand behind the werewolf, their eyes staring downwards and not meeting them in the eyes.

They must have found out about Evergreen's and Bickslow's ocular powers. Evergreen is not wearing her glasses and neither is Bickslow wearing his visor.

"How did they counter your visual powers?"

"Bickslow managed to catch the girly knight with his eyes, but the other one disrupted his concentration with an attack before he can truly take control. The battle got harder after that since they now know we can do stuffs with our eyes."

Freed nodded as he quickly explained his own situation.

"My opponent transformed into a werewolf after drinking some sort of liquid. He heals extremely fast and is able to evolve on the spot to counter your attacks. Be careful."

"No wonder you decided to transform." Bickslow commented as his dolls floated beside him. "That must be a pain to deal with."

"Tell me more about it." Freed mutter darkly under his breath.

Another explosion could be heard, and all six combatants turned to look at the source of the noise. One of the walls exploded into pieces as two familiar figures came in with one of them chasing the other.

"El?" Evergreen said in a disbelieving voice.

"I think you mean El _s_ with a capital S." Bickslow chipped in as another version of Elden swiped at their Elden with a shield that morphed into a long and large blade, forcing their Elden to duck and retaliate with a huge block of barrier that sent the Edolas Elden flying towards the werewolf and its allies by sheer coincidence.

"I said **_stop_** chasing after me! Time out! I need to get my hands on that Maginium!"

"Like hell I'm letting you go free like that! Come on, fight me!"

"I'm getting my hands on some of that Maginium no matter what! And why the hell is there an amusement park here in the castle?! Are you guys off your rockers?!" The Thunder God Tribe watched in secret amusement as their usually unflappable El getting increasingly ticked off by his Edolas counterpart. Elden gave a quick look at his surroundings before spotting them.

"Oh, you guys are here too."

"Yeah, but we are kind of stuck in a stalemate with these guys." Bickslow said as he pointed at the Edolas party, with Edo El walking to his Edolas comrades and standing at their front.

"Oh God, _no_. The last thing I need is a large-scale team battle. I really want to get my hands on the Maginium." El groaned out in irritation but moved to stand with the Thunder God Tribe anyway.

"There's Maginium here?" Evergreen asked in curiosity and Elden nodded in confirmation.

"Yeah. There's an armoured dragon mecha called the Dorma Anim that is wrecking havoc outside right now. The other me confirmed that it is made of a material similar to Maginium. He is just so damn persistent on fighting me though. I would have already taken some Maginium from the Dorma Anim if he weren't so annoying to deal with." Elden said as he gave a dirty look at his counterpart, who just seem unaffected by his glare.

"So, four vs four, eh? This should be fun." Edo El said with a grin on his face as he stood at the front of his team. "I wonder which team is stronger?"

"Wipe that damn smirk of your face. I'm gonna make you pay for that stupid Anima attack." Elden growled out in irritation and the Thunder God Tribe stood by him, ready to enter into battle in an instant.

"Finally, I can have the epic battle that I want." Edo El said happily as he raised his shield up high in the air with his right arm and his allies took their own battle stance as well. "Time to see who is stronger! Reality Marble: Unlimited Blade Works!"

Whatever the reunited Thunder God Tribe was expecting, they definitely weren't expecting _this_.

They are no longer in the castle, but a desolate wasteland with various weapons strewn about and stabbed downwards onto the ground. There is no end in sight, and they have no idea where they are.

"You-!" Elden said in disbelief as he looked at his counterpart with widened eyes. "How did you achieve this?!"

"I simply teleported us into a separate pocket dimension. I may have called it a Reality Marble, but in essence the principal behind it is more like Obito's Kamui. I merely borrowed the name of Reality Marble because it sounds cooler." Edo El said before a savage smile broke out across his face.

"Watch out, we are coming after you guys now."

Edo El picked up a sword within grabbing distance from the ground and led the charge with his comrades behind him. The Thunder God Tribe dashed towards their opponents as well to meet them in battle.

"Shinra Tensei!"

"Oh no you don't! Sugarboy!"

Sugarboy slashed at the incoming wall of barriers with his sword, and Elden's barriers melted away immediately, giving the Edolas team a path to charge through Elden's attacks.

"Baryon Formation!"

Bickslow attacks tore up the ground and temporarily halted the Edolas party's advance. Edo El stopped the attack with his shield, stopping Bickslow's attacks in its tracks.

"Ani-"

"Don't even think about it."

An invisible force slammed into Edo El from the side and separated him from his group. Elden chased after him while firing attacks of his own.

"You can absorb any magical attacks that you want, but there's no way for you to absorb them if you can't see them coming in the first place. There is also a cost to activating your version of Anima. Whatever attacks you wish to absorb, it is more cost efficient if the cost of activating the Anima is lower than the magic attack that you absorb and then turn it into your own power. That's why you don't use it until I use my bigger moves."

"Wow! I guess I really shouldn't underestimate my counterpart, you catch on fast. Anything else about my abilities you want to add on?"

"Theoretically, your shield has the best defense and is the ultimate counter to anyone who uses magic to attack you since all their attacks can be potentially sucked in by your Anima. But there's no other way to fight you without magic when you yourself are using that magic tool. You are a most annoying opponent."

"Aww, I take it as a compliment then."

Edo El's shield elongated and transformed into a chainsaw but got itself blocked by Elden's barriers. Hughes used his wand to take command over the various weapons strewn around them and attack the Thunder God Tribe, but Bickslow used his dolls to fire off another beam of attack that destroyed the controlled weapons.

"Watch out for the chains! Don't let them get you! They can suck away your magic!"

The Thunder God Tribe scattered upon hearing Elden's warning as numerous chains lashed out at them from afar and Edo El joined back into the fray, taking the position of vanguard once more. The Edolas group was suddenly bombarded by an unseen force and they retreated a small distance away as Elden regrouped with the Thunder God Tribe.

"Hey, Earthland me, wanna see something?" Edo El teased with a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"How about **_no_**?" Elden declined as Evergreen sneaked in a cloud of combustible dust within the Edolas group, blasting them sky high.

"Six Paths of Pain, activate! Shinra Tensei!"

Much to everyone's disbelief once more, Edo El did the unbelievable and used his own version of Shinra Tensei to defend his group from the explosion and El's invisible barrage.

"Oooh! I have always wanted to do this!" Edo El exclaimed before pointing his palm downwards from where he is high up in the sky.

"Know pain! Feel pain! Accept pain!" Edolas El shouted in a dramatic fashion while cackling evilly.

 **"Shinra Tensei!"**

Elden protected the Thunder God Tribe by encasing them in a protective dome, although that didn't prevent them from getting pushed back by a repulsion force.

"Why is he going on and on about pain?" Freed asked, still in his demon form. "And I can't believe that he actually uses the same attack as you."

"Don't mind him. He's just a little not right in the head." Elden muttered under his breath with his right eye twitching uncontrollably.

"How did he achieve that effect though? He didn't use any form of barriers." Evergreen questioned as they waited for Edo El's attack to die down.

"Probably some sort of gravity magic or vector magic to produce a repulsive force." Elden replied. "Edo me is a little on the crazy side, but he is a capable fighter with a shit ton of creativity and the smarts to use it properly. This is not looking good for us. If this is only a single path, I don't want to find out what the other five paths is really capable of in this world."

"You actually know what he means by ' _Six Paths'_?" Bickslow asked incredulously.

"I do. I came up with my own version of it but only the one with Shinra Tensei actually worked. The rest didn't. It's either incompatible with my magic or physically impossible to do. That's the advantage a magic tool has over innate magic. They are just so damn versatile and can do nearly everything if you program and create it right."

"Ok. What can we possibly expect from the other five paths based on what you created? So that we can, you know, prepare?" Evergreen asked dryly as the attack finally subsided, but there is still a large cloud of smoke that is blocking their vision.

"Well, the path that uses Shinra Tensei, the Deva Path, has two abilities. The first one is Shinra Tensei, the second one is-"

 **"Bansho Ten'in!"**

"That."

The entire Thunder God Tribe got themselves pulled by an invisible force even though Elden's barriers is supposed to protect them from magic being cast on them directly.

"What the hell?!"

A large snarling werewolf dashed towards them while the Thunder God Tribe are momentarily helpless, with Sugarboy on his back and sword at the ready.

"They are trying to get to us!"

"Well, eat this then. Shinra Tensei!"

Elden's version of Shinra Tensei pushed all their attackers back, its speed being increased due to Edo El's use of Bansho Ten'in and forcing Edo El to cancel that attack if he do not wish to further increase the speed of Elden's barriers coming at him.

"Dark Ecriture: Darkness Slash!"

Freed wasted no time in creating a large curved line of dark magic that extended outwards from the side of his opened palm and slashed at the Edolas team, separating them from each other.

"Senbonzakura!"

"Fairy Bomb: Gremlin!"

"Line Formation!"

Waves of pink petals mixed with dust particles engulfed the entire Edolas team in a huge explosion. Bickslow's attack caught the approaching werewolf and pushed it away from them, protecting his comrades.

The weapons around the Thunder God Tribe suddenly launched themselves at the Thunder God Tribe but Freed managed to react in time and set up a barrier of runes around the group, saving them from being impaled.

"This is getting nowhere!" Evergreen exclaimed. "We are all equal to them in terms of power!"

"The werewolf and the other El is the main threat." Bickslow added. "The other two take on a more supportive role. The one named Sugarboy is a direct counter to El's abilities, we need to take him out as well. The other guy should be fine as long as we are careful."

"This place is their playground. They have the home ground advantage." Freed warned. "If only we could get out of here and fight in somewhere more… _normal_. The fact that they know our eyes contain special powers isn't helping too. We can't use a sneak attack and they are careful in not making eye contact with us."

Elden remained silent for a few seconds before speaking up.

"Then we will force them to. Ever, Bickslow, we are going for a sneak attack using your eyes. Aim for Sugarboy and Hughes since they are easier to get at. We only have about a second or two before Edo me sucks up my next move with his absorption technique." Elden took in a deep breath before narrowing his eyes in concentration.

"Barrier-make: Mirrors!"

Countless rectangular panes of barriers appeared throughout the entire battlefield. What is different with these barriers is that they have a shiny surface that reflects light extremely well, showing numerous reflections of everyone on the battlefield.

And it also allows Evergreen and Bickslow to have eye contact with their targets with absolute clarity.

"Sugarboy! Hughes!"

Like Elden predicted, Edo El sucked in the mirror-like barriers only after a second or two as he tried to dodge a slash of the blade from the controlled Sugarboy, courtesy of Bickslow. Hughes had already been turned to stone thanks to Evergreen.

"Byro, get them! Buy me some time!"

"Freed! Ever! Get the wolf! Protect Bickslow! I'm going after the Edo me!"

Freed immediately went on the offensive with Evergreen as his support, protecting Bickslow who is concentrating on controlling Sugarboy and using him to attack Edo El. Edo El knocked out Sugarboy soon with a well-placed hit to his neck.

"Naraka Path: Restoration"

A greenish glow appeared on Edo El's shield, but he aborted that technique at the last second as Elden announced his arrival with a huge fist made of barriers. Edo El raised his shield to block the attack and grabbed a nearby sword from the ground with a jagged edge and swiped at Elden, who dodged the attack and counterattacking with a sword of his own that is made from his magic.

"Get out of my way!"

Edo El unleashed another Shinra Tensei and commanded the weapons near him to launch themselves at Elden, who blocked it with his barriers before pushing them away with his own Shinra Tensei.

"Alright, now I'm pissed. Byro, get back here!"

The werewolf acknowledged with a howl and returned to its ally. It slashed at Elden with its claws, but its attacks were blocked by one of Bickslow's dolls and the doll fired a beam of magic to force it back.

"I cannot turn the werewolf to stone!" Evergreen informed the team as she shouted over all the noise. "My Stone Eyes cannot work on anything that isn't human. I guess that it is safe to say that the wolf is no longer human!"

"Trading his humanity for the sake of his ideals, huh? We may be enemies, but I can respect his dedication." Freed said as he inscribed another set of runes on his body.

"Dark Ecriture: Absolute Shadow"

Freed transformed once more as he now donned a dark armour and slammed his palm onto the werewolf's torso with a crackling energy orb, causing the werewolf to convulse in shock.

"Dark Ecriture: Destruction!"

"Full Counter!"

Edo El somehow managed to escape the attacks from the other members of the Thunder God Tribe and stand in between the werewolf and Freed's attack. Freed's attack connected with Edo El's shield, but he suddenly found his own attack being reflected by the shield back on him in full force.

"Freed!"

Evergreen rushed to rain her attacks down on the werewolf and Edo El while Elden rushed to check on Freed. Bickslow helped Evergreen in her endeavour as they provide suppressive fire on their foes, not letting up in their attack.

"I'm… I'm fine…" Freed coughed out as he lay in Elden's arms, who is supporting him and helping him to sit up. However, he had reverted back to normal and definitely in no condition to continue fighting. Upon seeing this sight, Elden took Freed further away from the site of battle to let him rest out of harm's way before joining back into the battle.

The werewolf howled a beastly roar before its body began to morph again as it now grew armour plates on its body that resisted every attack that Bickslow and Evergreen threw at it. The skin on its back near its shadow blade broke as wings started to grow from its back. The werewolf quickly flew into the air while charging up a huge amount of magic between its jaws and shooting it at Bickslow and Evergreen.

"Fairy's Aegis!"

Elden's shield reached his comrades in time and it blocked the werewolf's attack. However, Edo El took the momentary distraction to get closer to Bickslow and Evergreen.

"Anima!"

Bickslow deftly got out of the way, but Evergreen is not so lucky as she got her magic sucked out of her and soon lay limp on the floor with her magic reserves drained.

"Fuck you!"

Bickslow's dolls shot out more beams of attacks in his rage, but the werewolf descended upon him from above and nearly mauled him until Elden managed to grab and pulled him away.

"Calm down, Bickslow! Getting angry won't get you anywhere!"

Bickslow reined in his anger at Elden's words and calmed his breathing.

"Right. Sorry about that."

Elden flicked his fingers and a horizontal pane of barriers lifted the unconscious Evergreen off the ground and ferry her to Freed's location.

"Heh, two vs two now." Edo El smirked as he still remained relatively unscathed. "Who will win?"

Bickslow's face scrunched up in rage at Edo El's words before he hit upon an idea.

"El, would your Dispel spell work on the wolf? If we can turn it back to normal, then the wolf wouldn't be a threat to us anymore."

"It's worth a try, but no guarantee. You will need to buy me some time to prepare the spell though, since my barriers will simply get sucked in by that annoying shield if I put it out for too long."

"I will buy you the time."

"Got it. Be careful."

With that, Elden leapt backwards and immediately began the preparation to cast Dispel. Bickslow blasted the werewolf and Edo El with his magic and tried to engage Edo El in close combat so that he can make eye contact with his Figure Eyes. Edo El fought him off with his shield as the wolf jumped in to injure Bickslow, who danced around his opponents with nimble footwork while his dolls rained down attacks from above with pinpoint accuracy.

"Screw these dolls. I'm getting them down!"

Chains lashed out from Edo El's shield and snagged the dolls, which immediately became lifeless and still. Edo El tried to bash the end of shield onto Bickslow, who ducked and rolled on the floor before getting to Edo El's back and proceeded to hug and restrain him from behind.

At that exact moment, five swords that has been near the trio while they were fighting it out raised itself from the ground and proceeded to impale the wolf by stabbing through its feet. The swords are coated with a shroud of magic to increase their piercing capabilities, pinning the werewolf down onto a single location and not allowing it to move.

Edo El's eyes widened after seeing the familiar glow of magic the shroud took. It's Bickslow's magic!

"You! You transferred the souls of your dolls to the swords before I got your dolls!"

"A little late in figuring out, eh?" Bickslow grinned as he continued to restrain a struggling Edo El. "El, now!"

"Dispel!"

The spell casted by Elden washed over the werewolf, who howled in agony before it glowed brightly and shrank in size, reverting back to the form of a short old man who now lay unconscious with his feet still stabbed and held in place by the swords.

"Byro!"

With a war cry, Edo El free himself from Bickslow's hold and slammed his shield into him, causing Bickslow to spit blood out from his mouth. The tip of the shield morphed into a cannon, and Edo El took aim before blasting a huge amount of magic at Bickslow, taking him out.

Elden came charging in and slammed into Edo El with his own shield, pushing him away from the fallen Bickslow.

"So it came back to this. We should have just fight like this since the very start." Edo El spoke as the both of them tried to push against one another with their shields.

"I don't know how you made all these famous anime attacks a reality, but I am not going to lose to you."

"Let's just say that I am a genius when it comes to magic tools crafting and programming. I designed and made this entire shield myself."

Edo El pushed Elden back and leaped backwards to gain some distance before calling out his next attack.

"Gates of Babylon!"

A large distortion in space formed behind Edo El as many weapons of all shapes and sizes emerged from it before taking aim at Elden.

"Another attack from the Fate series? I really hate how versatile your stupid shield is, you know that?"

"Love you too, sweetheart. Let's see if you can survive this."

The huge number of weapons rained down upon Elden, who charged up his magic before calling out his next attack.

"Susanoo!"

The full form of Susanoo sprang to life as it immediately dashed forward towards Edo El as the rain of weapons bounced harmlessly off its body. A single backhand swipe of its arm knocked into Edo El and sent him flying into the air, who didn't have the time to react and use Anima to suck the magic from the huge construct.

Chains emerged from Elden's wrist and wrapped around Edo El as Elden used it to pull himself closer to his Edolas counterpart and punched him with his other fist that is encased in a gauntlet made of barriers. Susanoo faded away; its purpose had been completed.

"Asura Path"

Elden merely slammed his fist into Edo El's face in response, disrupting the attack. Edo El kicked at Elden and forced them apart. The two of them landed back on the ground, huffing for air as they kneel on the ground, too tired to get up.

"That's it, I'm ending this. But first." Edo El snapped his fingers and the fallen members of both sides of the battle teleported out of the dimension. "I have to send them back to Edolas. They would all die here otherwise."

"Thank you for that." Elden replied dryly with a hint of sincerity in his voice. "You are annoying as hell, but you can be polite and courteous when you want to be. Thanks for sending my friends out of the battle."

Edo El merely snorted in response.

"Just promise me that whatever the outcome is, turn Hughes back to normal. I don't want him to remain a stone statue."

"That would depend if my guild is safe." Elden replied as he shakily stood back up. "If anything untoward happens to them, all talks are off the table."

"Are you dumb, other me?" Edo El rolled his eyes as he also stood back up on shaky legs. "If Dorma Anim appeared, it means that the huge ass piece of lacrima that are your friends got sent back to Earthland by that stupid brother of mine. We can now fight this out without any interference. We can finally have a battle between reincarnated souls where no secrets need to be kept. It's kind of stuffy having to keep this knowledge all by myself, you get what I'm saying?"

"I have to agree with you on this one." Elden said. "It feels liberating being able to say anything from your past without the fear of getting judged about it. I never told anyone about my reincarnated status, but talking to you about my previous life is actually kind of fun. Thanks for being here."

"Heh. I am going to end this in one move. Don't die now, you hear me?"

"I should be the one saying that to you."

As if on cue, the both of them retreated and put some distance between them. Edo El raised his shield high up in the air before a light blue sphere of magic energy formed above the shield and steadily grew bigger and bigger until it eclipsed the battlefield.

"This is my strongest attack, Spirit Bomb. Guess where the inspiration of this attack came from?" Edo El asked cheekily as the attack continued to grow in size.

"Pretty sure its Dragonball, although I can't remember much about it. My memories retained more knowledge from the other manga series that were more popular before I died in my previous life." Elden said as he clapped his hands together once before drawing it apart, a small golden string formed from between his palms as he did so.

"Barrier-make: Fairy Thread. Your turn, guess where I took the inspiration from?"

"What the hell? A string? You think you are a puppet master or something? You are one of those Sasori fans?" Edo El said in contempt as he squinted his eyes to take a better look at the glowing string. "What the hell is this string supposed to do anyway?"

"Actually, it is an attack inspired by One Piece. Doflamingo, remember? The tough son of a bitch that only lost to Luffy because of plot armour? At least I think that Doflamingo should have been the winner of that fight even if I cannot remember most of it already."

"Oh, that." Edo El blinked in realisation as he maintained his hold over the Spirit Bomb. "So, what's your little string gonna do?"

Elden grabbed one end of the string with one hand before swinging it outwards. The string immediately lengthened drastically.

"I have been trying to come up with this attack for a very long time, ever since I managed to create chains with my barriers. I only just managed to perfect the art of creating a string. I wanted to use this new move on Tenrou when Grimoire Heart inevitably come after us, but this situation calls for some drastic measures." Elden flicked the string once more and it lengthened again, and he keeps repeating this process until the length of the string got impossibly long.

"You mind explaining more about what that stupid string can do?" Edo El asked. "Just curious, since it is supposedly your strongest attack. Mine just blast everything into oblivion, if you want to know."

Elden raised an eyebrow, but obliged his counterpart's request anyway.

"This thread goes against everything my Barrier magic stands for. Contrary to my barriers' defensive nature, this thread is an absolute offensive spell, imbued with the indestructible properties of Fairy Sphere and hence cannot be destroyed. My barriers are never meant to create something so small and condensed, and definitely incapable of bending. Creating a thread that can twist and bend is supposed to be impossible. Just creating one string take up a lot of concentration on my part. I have to create so many individual microscopic barriers, controlling each and every one of them, and then link them up together to even form a single thread. That's the only way I can create a flexible barrier, by linking many small barriers up and controlling them individually on a microscopic scale."

Edo El's grin grew even bigger.

"You know what? I'm starting to like you, Earthland me. That is one interesting way to recreate Doflamingo's moves."

"I still find you annoying, but I guess you are alright in my books too, as long as you are not after the lives of those close to me. At least you are an opponent with an honour code. I can tell from our battles."

The two Eldens shifted themselves and took their battle stance. The air stilled as the very atmosphere got affected by the huge amount of magic buzzing in the air.

 **"ELDEN!"**

With a shout from both Eldens at the same time, both of them threw their attacks at the other. The huge mass of Spirit Bomb flew towards Earthland Elden at an alarming speed as he whipped the long golden thread at the huge mass of magic, stopping it in its tracks.

"Break!"

With that warcry, the golden thread split the Spirit Bomb into two halves and caused it to detonate prematurely. Both Eldens were blasted backwards from the impact and immediately used their respective abilities to shield themselves from harm.

"No damn way."

Edo El whispered as he watched in amazement as the collision of the two attacks caused the very dimension to crack, and then shatter from the explosion.

The next thing he knew, he is high up in Edolas's sky and dropping down towards the ground. He tried to summon something from his shield to help him levitate in the air or stop his descent, but then realised that all the magic in his shield had ran out after that last attack.

 _'Ah crap, guess this is how I'm gonna die. Again.'_

Edo El watched as the distance between him and the ground got shorter and shorter. He closed his eyes, waiting for the inevitable to happen.

It didn't happen.

Edo El opened his eyes and found himself within the safe confines of Earthland El's sphere of barriers. The user of the technique didn't look so good though, he is gasping for air as he directed the sphere and landed on the ground. The technique disappeared the moment they landed.

"Hey, you ok?"

"Will… be… fine…" Earthland El huffed out as he lay on his back on the ground. He caught his breath after a minute.

"I'm spent."

"Same here." Edo El said as he lay beside his counterpart on the ground, letting his shield fall from his arm and dropping onto the ground. "My shield is out of magic too. I guess this is a draw?"

"Yeah, I guess. Where are we now anyway?"

"Somewhere not too far from the castle. The cracking of the Reality Marble dimension kind of shifted our coordinates. We are supposed to return back to the amusement park after Reality Marble ended."

"How did you even make that possible? Another separate dimension? Really?"

"Hey, what's so unbelievable about that? I am a genius in magic tool crafting! A genius that Edolas only sees once every few generations!"

"Yeah, yeah." Earthland El waved his counterpart off as they look at the explosion in the sky that is the result of their attacks. The explosion is still growing in size and lit up the dark night sky of Edolas in a variety of colours. Thankfully, the explosion is occurring high up in the sky. The entire city would be obliterated otherwise.

"Just what did you feed into that Spirit Bomb of yours?"

"Just lots of magic. I was about to ask you the same question. What did you feed into that stupid piece of string? My Spirit Bomb wasn't supposed to react this way. It's like it's feeding off our combined magic and growing bigger."

"Just lots of magic." Earthland El threw back Edo El's previous reply at him before sitting back up.

"Hey, you said you and Mystogan are brothers, right? Do you think me and Jellal…"

"Maybe." Edo El replied with a shrug, which earned a tick mark from Earthland El due to his gesture being copied and used. "Not much was said or explored in the manga series about Jellal's past, I don't think the anime spoke about it either. Who knows? Maybe you guys are half-brothers too."

"But that would mean the Dad in my second life… _Oh God_. He had an _affair_?!" Earthland El facepalmed as he said this.

"Or maybe you guys are just long-lost brothers?"

"Don't think so. I actually retained the seven years of memories before I took over this body. There were no memories of me having another sibling. I am the only child as far as I am aware of."

Edo El stood up from his place on the ground, prompting a raised eyebrow from his Earthland counterpart.

"Hey, don't think too much about it. Maybe it's different for you case. Let's go. Time to visit that idiot brother of mine before he tries to play hero. I always knew this would happen, that Edolas will lose its magic, but I want to change a certain outcome for the better. Mind giving me a lift?"

"Sure, I still have a little magic left. But why are you suddenly helping us? Not that I don't appreciate it, but you were just trying to kill us not long ago."

Edo El gave Elden a flat stare.

"You really are dumb, aren't you?"

Veins visibly throbbed on Elden's forehead at that remark.

"You are so goddamn annoying." Elden settled for that remark as he gave his counterpart a lift with his barriers.

"I was never on my father's side. Everything was an act. I thought that was obvious? You do realise I never killed you or Bickslow when I had the chance, right? I had foreknowledge like you, you think I would let things happen the way they did like in canon until now if I was truly serious in obtaining infinite magic? You guys would have never made it to the Royal City in that case since I had so much time to prepare. It's just that I am smarter in concealing my intentions, unlike my brother, who openly rebelled against our father."

Edo El facepalmed as he gave a sigh. "I kept telling him to endure it and that it is easier if we worked secretly against our father from the inside, but _noooooooo_ , that idiot had to get himself exiled because he couldn't endure for just a _little_ longer. This whole thing could have been easier to handle if he wasn't so impulsive."

Earthland El stared at Edo El in shock.

"What? You are on our side all along?"

"I am helping Jel, or Mystogan as you call him, from the inside. I am the one who has been feeding him information in secret about Edolas and when the Animas will open on the other side all these years. We couldn't stop every single Anima, but the numbers decreased. The scientists thought that the Anima had performance issues since they never found out what was wrong with it, but it is because I did some secret modifications on my part."

Elden's eyes widened in realisation.

"So that's why the Anima didn't appear when I went to save Lisanna a few years ago. It was one of the Animas that were stopped."

"That is just a coincidence. I didn't know which Anima is the one that caused your Lisanna to appear here in canon, but the fact that she didn't come here proves that Jel and I made a positive change. Hopefully for the better."

"If that's the case, why don't you just reverse the Anima straightaway? Then we won't need to go through all these shenanigans."

"The Dorma Anim." Edo El replied immediately. "It can be fuelled by almost anything, even without magic. If my father can get it to move with electricity or other forms of energy source, he will still be able to rule with tyranny. My father has been nice to me, well, as nice as a tyrant can be, but what he has been doing is not acceptable. We need to get Dorma Anim destroyed if we want to overthrow his tyrannical rule. But there's nothing in Edolas that is capable of destroying the Dorma Anim." He gave Earthland El a glance as they both ride the barriers that he created to ferry them back to the castle. "Other than your crazy guild."

"So you let my entire guild and town get sucked up and land themselves here to destroy the Dorma Anim for you."

"Yeah, I wasn't expecting _you_ though. I wasn't expecting another version of me to land in the world of Fairy Tail as well. But then I saw how strong you are and I cannot help but want to face you in a fair fight. Go out with a bang before magic becomes history. One last epic final fight for me to remember."

"AHH!" Earthland Elden suddenly screamed in frustration before pointing a finger at Edo El. "You! You reminded me! I need to get some Maginium! It's all your fault that I cannot get my hands on the Maginium! I need to find the remains of the Dorma Anim! Where is it?!"

"Whatever, just take this then." Edo El threw his shield at his other self, who caught it in surprise. "It is made of the same material as the Dorma Anim anyway. Melt it down or use it, or anything. I don't really care anymore. It will be a useless piece of metal when the magic is gone from this world." Edo El paused before continuing. "If you can get it to work back in Earthland, then maybe you can access my separate dimension, the Gates of Babylon. I'm sure there are a few blocks of that metal that you are so desperately searching for in there, along with a whole lot of top notch lacrima crystals. It's the hidden stash that I accumulated over the years while inventing new magic tools for the country."

"Thanks." Earthland Elden said sincerely. "You have no idea how important finding that metal is to me."

"Don't thank me so soon. You need to first make sure that the lacrima inside the shield doesn't get suck away in the reverse Anima and then assimilate itself back in Earthland's atmosphere, or you wouldn't be able to access the Gates. Not sure how you are able to get that done, since the reverse Anima will-"

Earthland Elden simply stored the shield away with Requip.

"…Or that works too. Is that Requip?"

"Yeah, but I'm not that good in it. Only able to store a few objects and I usually take some time to summon it back out. Not useful in combat situations."

The castle is in sight by now, and Edo El directed Elden to land at a specific spot.

"What are you planning to do anyway?" Elden asked as Edo El led them along the twisted corridors of the castle.

"My brother has never been happy with staying here. He never says it, but I know he is a lot happier in Earthland, and he never wants to take over our father to be the next King. This is the last thing I will do for him as his brother."

"You are going to send him back to Earthland? How?"

Edo El produced a mini pistol from one of his pockets.

"Inside this pistol is a bullet with a special type of lacrima that I invented. I have been working on it alone in secret for three years. The 'Artificial Mage Project', or 'AMP' for short. By inserting this lacrima inside someone with no magic, the lacrima will fuse with the body of the person and grow to become a magic container for the person, effectively making that person a mage, even if it is through artificial means. It only takes less than a minute to transform the person into an artificial mage too. With that, Jel will also be taken back to Earthland with the reverse Anima since he will now have magic in his body. Even after so long, I only managed to make one of this. This is some insane level of work."

Elden simply stare at Edo El in amazement.

"You are annoyingly amazing, you know that?"

"Praise me more, come on." Edo El struck a dashing pose, which immediately cancelled out all feelings of amazement his other self have of him. Elden walked straight ahead towards their destination and Edo El ran to catch up with him.

"I don't think Mystogan will willingly let you insert this into him. He's not that type of person to leave you alone here."

"I know, he's stupid like that. But that's what I like about him too. He still shouldn't stay here, he has always seen himself as Mystogan of Fairy Tail, not Edolas's Second Prince. I am willing to be King of this world and to help it move forward in a world without magic. We have both come from a world like that anyway. It is not as scary as people will think."

Elden's eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Why do I have the feeling that there is more to you wanting to become King?"

"Ohohoho! As expected from my other me!" Edo El laughed dramatically before rubbing his hands together in glee.

"I told you, didn't I? Being King means I can get my own harem! It's every otaku's dream come true! I already had Erza wrapped around my finger and let me tell you, she has the most _amazing_ body! Then there's Mirajane, Cana, Juvia, Levy, Lucy, and even Wendy from Fairy Tail while I was part of the guild! I'm sure that there are also more-"

"I'm just going to stop you right there." Elden held out a palm to stop his counterpart from explaining more about his plan to conquer the hearts of women in this world. "I don't want to know. And Wendy's underage, you pedophile."

"She's a lot older in this world, you dumb peasant. My Wendy here has an impressive rack too." Edo El said this with a perverted look on his face. "I can't wait for the day when I-"

"Just. Stop." Elden said with a sigh. "We reached our destination already, by the way."

"What are we waiting for? Let's go in!"

* * *

"Prince! Think carefully about it! If you go ahead with this plan, you will die!"

"I know. I am fully prepared for the consequences. This world needs a hero and a villain. You are suited to be the hero, who will execute me, as the traitor who destroyed this world. It will then allow you to become King of this world and lead Edolas through this crisis."

"Prince! Are you even listening to what you are saying?! You are telling me to-"

Whatever Lily wanted to say was cut off by an unexpected guest.

"Hey Jel! My little brother! How's it going!"

"El?" Mystogan said in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

Edo El merely pointed upwards.

"You both might want to take a look upwards."

Both Mystogan and Lily looked upwards at Edo El's words, who had taken this chance to quickly whip out his pistol and shot the special bullet at Mystogan, who now lay on the ground unconscious from the unexpected shot.

"Ah. The classic trick. Works every time."

"Prince!" Lily cried out as he cradled Mystogan's unconscious form although strangely enough, he isn't bleeding nor are there any visible wounds on his person. Lily looked back at Edo El in rage.

"What is the meaning of this, Crown Prince?!"

"Relax, Lily, that idiot is still alive. This is my last act of kindness to him as his brother. With that, he can continue to live a life with magic. Leave the stupid villain and hero thing to me. His plan was never going to work if you are in the equation anyway. You will be sucked up along with the rest of Edolas's magic from the reverse Anima."

"You guys done?" A second Elden poked his head in from the door of the chamber where the Anima machine is located.

"Yeah, you can come in now."

Edo El walked over to start the process of activating the reverse Anima. The whir of the machine started to get louder and louder as the sequence of programs got activated.

"There's no going back from this." Edo El said with a solemn expression on his face before turning back to face Lily and take a last good look at his brother with a caring expression on his face.

"Take care of him for me, won't you? I won't be able to save his ass and clean up his mess anymore after this."

"I will." Lily said determinedly as he carried Mystogan's unconscious body. "But what about you? What are you planning to do? What's your plan?"

"I will take over as King. You and I both know that this stupid brother of mine never wanted to be King. That stupid act of his earlier is not something a King should do. Self-sacrifice should only be done if it is the only option left. He clearly never thought this out thoroughly." Edo El ended his speech with a scoff, but there's no mistaking the endearment he has for Mystogan in his voice.

Lily gave a fatherly smile at Edolas Elden before kneeling down one last time as his subject. This is the last time that they are going to interact with each other.

"I'm sure you will be a brilliant King, Crown Prince."

"Thank you, Lily. Nadi, you can come in now."

"Crown Prince!" The black exceed made his way in timidly while shaking his arm. "Is it time?"

"Yeah, the plan that we had been preparing for have to be put into place now. Have you contacted the Earthland mages?"

"Yes! They are most willing to help after hearing what I had to say! I still find it hard to believe that your Precognition came through! I never thought that there would be a human with the same power as the Queen!"

Edo El tried his best to ignore his counterpart's silent and deadpan stare as he rubbed the bottom of his nose briefly with a finger.

" _Precognition_. Really? That's what you told the exceeds?" Elden asked the moment the black exceed left the room together with Lily and the unconscious Mystogan.

"What? Whatever works, works. Right?" Edo El argued back as he gave another sigh and took a seat, picking up a stave that he retrieved from the unconscious Mystogan earlier. Elden sat beside him as they enjoyed their last moments together.

"So."

"So."

Both Eldens looked at each other before bursting out in laughter. A sense of closure and peace washed over them as the curtains to this event finally began to start drawing to a close, heralding a new beginning for Edolas.

"I guess this is goodbye." Elden stated before knocking on Mystogan's stave with his knuckle. "Why would you want this particular stave anyway? And when did you collude with the exceeds?"

"Yeah, I guess this is goodbye. It was nice knowing you, really." Edo El said as he watched the falling city from where they are while he explained his actions. "This stave has no other use other than opening and closing the Anima. My brother won't have a use for it after the entire thing is over. I'm collecting this as a memento for me to remember him by. As for the exceeds, all I have to do is to show them my powers of 'precognition'." Edo El did an air quote motion with his fingers as he said this. "The Queen was very cooperative after that. Nadi was the main point of contact between me and Extalia. He is very loyal. I like him, that cat."

The both of them sat by each other in silence for the next few minutes, until a large explosion caught their attention and the 'Great Demon Lord Dragneel' made his presence known.

"That's my cue. You better get going too. Your friends are going to be worried about you." Edo El said as Natsu began to destroy the city to lure Edo El out.

"Yeah. You will be a great King, I know it." Elden said with a smile as they both stood up and walked in different directions before they both said their final farewell without looking back.

" **Goodbye, Elden**."

* * *

"EL!"

I was greeted by three bodies throwing themselves on me and stacking on me like a dogpile the moment I located my friends.

"Guys? I can't breathe."

The Thunder God Tribe got themselves off me as I stood back up. We both turned to look at the fight between the 'Great Demon Lord Dragneel' and my counterpart.

He is getting his ass handed to him. Hah! Serves him right for giving me such a hard time!

I turned back to the Thunder God Tribe.

"What happened to the other three? The ones we were fighting with?"

"Turned the guy back to normal from being a stone statue. Nothing much after that. All of us were too tired and injured to carry on fighting so we decided to leave each other alone. We were trying to find you." Evergreen stated. "By the way, more people had arrived from Earthland to help us out."

"Who?" I asked, feeling a little puzzled. Who else will come all the way to Edolas to help us out? How did they even do that?

"El!"

A white blur tackled me and I caught the newcomer in surprise with my arms. What is she doing here?!

"Mira?"

"I was so worried! I found the three of them and they told me what happened and we kept searching for you, but we cannot find you! Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." I reassured Mira with a smile before looking at her quizzically. "How are you here?"

"Mystogan." Mira replied. "I happened to bump into Gildarts on the way back from my photoshoot only to find Magnolia gone when we returned. We were panicking over it until Mystogan found us, explained what happened and then he sent us here. We were helping to hold off the entire Royal Army." She put a finger to her chin in a thoughtful manner before continuing. "Ten thousand of them, by my estimates."

"You were _what_?!"

Mira pointed in a certain direction and my gaze followed her finger until I saw the aftermath of the fight that she and Gildarts had been a part in.

The only way I can use to describe the aftermath is ' _total obliteration'_. There's no other way of describing the destruction the two S Class mages left in their wake.

"The Edo me is not going to be happy about this when he finds out. He is going to have to remodel the entire city."

"You should see Mira and Gildarts going at it, El." Bickslow, who had somehow found his visor and put it back on, commented with his tongue sticking out. "We were there to witness the fight towards its end. They tore the entire army apart. Just the two of them."

"You mean annihilated." Evergreen crossed her arms and shook her head. "I pity them, the soldiers. They don't know who they were up against."

"Where's Gildarts?" I asked in curiosity.

"He went to find Jellal. His fight with this world's Erza took place somewhere over there and he hasn't returned yet." Freed pointed to a faraway location. "We are trying to account for the people who had come here from Earthland."

I yawned as I fought to keep myself awake. This whole thing had severely tire me out. I never resorted to using Fairy Gates, but the length of the battles I had been through here had drained me enough nearly to the brink of exhaustion.

Mira pulled me down to sit beside her on the top of the roof of a building where we are watching Natsu duking it out with my counterpart. The reverse Anima will be sending us back anytime now.

"Just sleep, El. I will wake you when we get back home."

I smiled at Mira before shifting myself and lay my head on her lap.

"Have I ever told you what a wonderful feeling this is?"

Mira giggled before combing her fingers through my messy hair.

"Shush, you. Go to sleep. You need it."

I gave a last look at my counterpart, and then back at Mira before closing my eyes.

 _'Goodbye, Elden. You will make a great King. I know it.'_

* * *

 **AN: I wanted to separate and cut this chapter into two, but I never found the correct point to do so, so I decided to leave everything as one long ass chapter.**

 **I never went through the canon fights and I think you guys know by now I don't write scenes that are a pure re-enactment of canon fights. I hoped the non-canon battles and the changes to canon were interesting enough for you guys. Mystogan is confirmed to be staying in Fairy Tail now, and with that comes changes. Changes that I am planning to write about.**

 **When I am designing the character of Edolas Elden, I want him to be similar yet different to Earthland Elden. In the end, I decided to give him a more outgoing personality and also making him a huge troll. Earthland El can be troll at times too with the 24 hour race and how he teased Gajeel and Levy, but he does so occasionally unlike Edo El. I also decided to give Edolas Elden a perverted personality just for laughs (hopefully some of you laughed at that). On top of that, I made Edolas El insanely smart and brilliant in inventing magical tools, which will explain his prowess that is able to put him as Earthland El's equal.**

 **I never wanted Edolas Elden to be a true antagonist, so I settled on making him Mystogan's secret helper who just enjoys using and battling with magic. He is the type to do things in a dramatic fashion while being careful of what he does and definitely more sociable than his counterpart. Since the Avengers: Endgame was around the corner when I was planning this, I decided to give Edo El a shield since I happened to see a Captain America poster advertising about the movie when I was planning the story in my head on my way home from school. The versatility of Edo El's shield allowed me to write in as many famous anime attacks as possible that is not possible for Earthland El to use due to the properties of his Barrier magic. I hope you guys are satisfied. It was fun writing it but I'm not so sure if you guys enjoyed it as I did. It's been a long time since I wrote anything for TAOFT and I was afraid that I had gotten rusty.**

 **By the way, no spoilers about the Avengers. I haven't watched it yet.**

 **With that, the Edolas arc draws to a close. I hope you guys aren't too disappointed by this chapter and the entire Edolas arc in general, but I think this is the best I can do at my current level for this arc.**

 **Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter.**


	19. Chapter 19- What It Means To Be S Class

In hindsight, it was a miracle.

The fact that the entire Magnolia Town and Fairy Tail came back from the parallel world, _unscathed and alive_ , is a miracle.

Although surprisingly, no one in the guild seemed even fazed by the fact that they had been turned into lacrima. In fact, they joked about it as if such ridiculous things happen all the time. They are partying right now, just for the fun of it and to also officially welcome Lily into the guild.

Wendy knows that she only just joined the guild recently and she had heard how crazy Fairy Tail can be, but _THIS_.

Is crazy.

It has only been a day since they returned from Edolas. Her participation in the Edolas incident is the first big contribution that she had made to the guild as a member of Fairy Tail and she is proud of it. It is the first time that she had participated in a battle of that level. She didn't do much in the battle against the Orocion Seis other than detoxifying the poison in Erza's body and destroying the lacrima crystal with Sorano's help, but it was different in the battle she experienced in Edolas.

She stood as equals to the other Dragon Slayers in this guild. For the first time, Wendy experienced what she could be and how destructively powerful her magic is.

She stood as an equal to Gajeel and Natsu, who are some of the most powerful mages of Fairy Tail even if they are not S Class mages yet.

Her main role in the battle against the Dorma Anim is still mainly a supportive role, but it is still the most combat she had seen in her short life. The three of them were all pivotal in bringing the Dorma Anim down and for the first time, Wendy truly felt important, that her skills were needed.

Not only that, she finally found the Jellal that had saved her when she was young. Like her, he is staying in Fairy Tail for good.

Life couldn't be better.

What could be better is her combat skills. Wendy have no issues in being the support if the situation calls for it, but she is a _Dragon Slayer_. She had seen first-hand how powerful Gajeel and Natsu were with the same brand of magic. She wants to achieve that level of power too. She does not want to be looked down upon simply because she is a _little girl_.

She had never told anyone else, but she had enough of being belittled. She had enough of being told to stay by the side simply because she isn't able to fight.

She doesn't want to be coddled. She is _sick_ of it. Sick of having everyone else doing the heavy lifting while she cannot do anything but watch. Sick of being delegated to be a mere medic to heal wounds or cure sickness. Sick of being protected by everyone else, even if she knows that they did it out of good intentions simply because she is too young to be participating in such battles.

What went unsaid is that she does not know enough combative spells to help out. Most of the time, she is just a burden to others. But she can be so much more. She knows it. Everyone knows it.

She is Wendy Marvell, Grandeeney's daughter and the _Sky Dragon Slayer_. She also has the desire to stand at the pinnacle. She wants to be strong. She wants to be both an impressive support mage as well as a combat mage. She wants to be strong enough to be an S Class mage one day.

She wants to make Grandeeney proud, wherever she is right now.

This is her dream. This is the dream that she did not confide to anyone else. Even Carla doesn't know about it.

Wendy have no illusions that achieving her dream will be an arduous journey. Having a more versatile type of magic also means that she needs to spend more time perfecting the various aspects of it to achieve the same proficiency as her fellow Slayers. Gajeel's and Natsu's brand of Dragon Slayer magic is pretty straightforward. All they have to do respectively is to train themselves to harden the metal scales and the potency of the flames as much as possible. But for Sky Dragon Slayer magic?

There are so many things she can do with it that she is actually at a loss on what to focus on. To be S Class with her magic would mean she will master every aspect of it in the end, but just what should she focus first before she reached her dream?

A loud booming laughter in the guild hall caught her brief attention. The laughter belongs to Gildarts, the Ace of the guild. He never completed his 100-year quest, but the fact that he actually returned alive spoke volumes of the strength that he possesses. The sheer density and volume of his magic is staggering. His position in the guild is what Elden aims to be and takeover from the man someday. According to Mira, Elden's goal is to be the Ace of the guild, so that he can one day help Laxus when Laxus eventually becomes the guild master.

Wendy had never met Laxus although she had heard of what he did and how strong he is. From what Yukino told her, Laxus and Elden are supposedly equal in strength and Wendy had seen how powerful Elden is. To think that there was somebody else in Fairy Tail that can match Elden in power is frightening.

Not only that, Laxus is a Dragon Slayer as well, albeit a 'fake' one.

Wendy turned her thoughts back to Elden. If there is anybody in this guild that can give her good advice on how to grow stronger as a support mage, it will be him. Like her, Elden first started his career as a support mage before he gained enough power to best even other S Class mages in combat. Erza and Mira had both admitted that they don't stand a chance against Elden in a one on one battle since Elden's magic can easily counter theirs without much difficulty. The only possible way to win him is to either tire him out before you do, or to have enough power to destroy his defense repeatedly. Mira had told her the second option was what Gildarts chose when he had sparred against Elden many years ago. It was when Elden had challenged Gildarts for the position of the guild's Ace. Elden didn't win and no one else saw the match, but he had impressed Gildarts, which in turn shocked the entire guild when they learned about it. It's not easy getting a praise out of Gildarts.

Wendy knows that she needs someone who is both suitable and capable enough to train her. Gajeel and Natsu had both gave her helpful tips in certain aspects, but in all honesty, it can be mainly summarised into ' _beat the living daylights out of your opponents'_.

Which is not very helpful.

"Why the long face, Wendy?"

Wendy turned to her Jellal, who had opted to continue to call himself by the name of Mystogan in Earthland. He had chosen to discard his birth name to start anew in this world. Wendy gave him a bright smile. She is glad that they can finally meet and talk like old times.

"I'm just wondering if there's any way for me to get stronger." Wendy admitted. "I am a Dragon Slayer too. I don't want to be just an imitation of Natsu-san or Gajeel-san, but I don't know where to start."

"It takes lots of trial and error to find the perfect combat style for yourself." Mystogan admitted as they both lounged about in a corner of the guild and out of harm's way of the brawl that is currently happening in the middle of the guild hall.

Mystogan had finally decided to stop his secretive act since there isn't a point to it anymore. He took his mask off whenever he is present in the guild although he still put it on whenever he went outside the guild building. He and Jellal both agree that having Mystogan being mistaken for Jellal will bring unneeded troubles. Until Jellal got himself fully pardoned, Mystogan will have to wear a mask in public for both their sakes. If someone outside the guild somehow got wind of how Mystogan looks like before Jellal is pardoned, the cover story will be that they are long lost twins.

"I don't want to wait that long." Wendy pouted as she lay her chin on the wooden table. "But I really don't know what else I can do."

"How about you just ask El-niichan?" Yukino piped up from beside her as she sipped on some milkshake she procured from the bar. "Both of you are support mages anyway. He is really lazy, but I'm sure he can give you some good advice."

"It is a good idea. Just don't get infected with his laziness." Mystogan half-joked as he watched the brawl from the side.

"The Crown Prince of this world is very different from ours, but at the same time very similar too. They are both scarily brilliant." Lily commented in his shrunken size. His constitution isn't very compatible with Earthland's atmosphere which warped the way his magic worked. Lily didn't seem to mind it though. "Although I have to admit, it feels good to see a few familiar faces in this guild even if they aren't the same people I used to know."

"I saw your spar with Erza earlier. I'm surprised you actually managed to stand against our Erza in a sword fight." Carla stated from where she is standing on the table.

Lily just smiled good-naturedly at Carla's praise before he turned to Wendy.

"Just go ask the Crown Prin- no. Ask Elden for help, Wendy. The Crown Prince that I knew is a helpful person that gives his aid whenever he can despite his eccentricity. This world's Elden is the same as him in this regard."

"That's true." Mystogan nodded in agreement. "I didn't talk much to Elden here due to how much he reminded me of my brother. It was painful trying to talk to someone who looks so much like your loved ones but yet not them. Still, the fact is that both him and my brother are kind and helpful people. My brother helped me to clean up my mess more times than I could count. I miss him already."

"He will want you to be happy, Prince."

"Call me Mystogan, Lily. The Second Prince of Edolas is history. Right now, I am Mystogan of Fairy Tail."

"Aye sir! Did someone just call me! I heard my name!"

"Nobody called you, Tom-cat!" Carla snapped at Happy, who shrank in fear at Carla's temper.

"Come on, let's just go and find El-niichan!"

Yukino grabbed onto Wendy without any warning and pulled her along to the second floor of the guild. Yukino is a ball of energy and is the only one in the guild around her age that isn't Romeo. They had become fast friends as a result. She is also Elden's and the Strauss siblings' adoptive sister.

"Y-Yukino! Elden-san is resting!"

"He is always sleeping. He sleeps too much." Yukino dismissed her concerns as she continued to drag Wendy along with her. "He needs something better to do that isn't sleeping, reading, or training. Sometimes I wonder how he got himself a girlfriend as wonderful as Mira-nee with how boring he is."

The two of them finally reached the second floor and spotted both Elden and Mira immediately. As expected, Elden is asleep. His head is resting on Mira's lap with an opened book over his face to block out the light. Mira is reading leisurely as she gently stroked his hair with one hand while holding her own book with another as the couple rested on a couch. Mira had sensed them the moment the two kids appeared on the second floor and is waving them over to her.

"Mira-nee!" Yukino called out happily as she bounded to her eldest sister with her grip still on Wendy, who is trying to keep up with Yukino's pace.

Mira simply ruffled Yukino's hair with a hand in a motherly manner.

"You need something, don't you? What is it?"

"It isn't me that needs anything this time." Yukino said in faux annoyance. "It's Wendy!"

Yukino then let go of Wendy's hand and began to shake Elden roughly.

"El-niichan! Wake up already!"

"Yukino! It's fine! I can wait-"

"Oh, don't worry. It won't be long until I wake him up."

Mira simply gave an amused smile before passing Yukino a glass of water that is on the table next to her.

"Here, but make sure not to wet my dress."

"Thank you Mira-nee!"

Wendy stared in muted surprise. They aren't going to do what she thinks they are going to do, right?

Yukino took the book away from Elden's face, who immediately groaned at the sudden brightness assaulting his eyes.

"Yukino, which part of ' _I want to sleep_ ' is it that you don't understand? I'm _tired_."

"You've already sleept for an entire day yesterday! Wake up already!"

"Don't wanna." Elden slurred as he turned away from the kids, his head still resting on Mira's lap.

"Sleep more important. Sleep is good. Sleep is life. Me want sleep."

Mira simply laughed at Elden's response before speaking.

"El, Yukino has a weapon in hand."

"The Etherion can be over my head right now and I won't care." Elden murmured just loud enough for them to hear as he adjusted his position to make himself more comfortable. "It's too comfortable here and I don't want to move. I don't get a lap pillow from you everyday."

Yukino's eyes narrowed.

"I'm counting to three, El-niichan."

Elden gave no response.

"One."

Still no response.

"Two."

Wendy stared at Yukino. Is she really going to dump the glass of water on Elden?

"Three."

The water in the glass flew out and splashed towards Elden but it was suddenly blocked off by something invisible and then reflected back at Yukino, who sputtered and cough at the unexpected outcome.

"El-niichan!"

"What goes around comes around, Yukino." Mira said as she laughed with her left hand over her mouth.

"Mira-nee! Not you too!" Yukino whined as she pushed against something invisible that was erected between her and Elden. "El-niichan! Wake up already! Wendy needs your help! Do something productive other than sleeping for once!"

Elden shifted and finally sat up with a bleary look still on his face. He turned to look at Wendy.

"What help do you need?"

"U-Uh…" Wendy fumbled at the sudden question and she can feel her bad habit kicking in again in full gear. _Focus, Wendy! Elden is nice enough to wake up to help you! Speak!_

"She needs advice." Yukino said crossly as she wiped the water away from her face. "You are the only support mage who had made S Class in the guild. Wendy wants to grow stronger too."

"Oh." Elden said as he let out a yawn. "I don't mind, but I'm not sure if I will be a good teacher." He then glanced at Wendy.

"Well, if you can take away the fatigue I'm feeling right now with your magic, then I suppose we can start right away."

"Eh?" Wendy blinked in surprise. That is all?

"You can't tell since he is always sleeping, but El-niichan feels extreme fatigue whenever he finishes a big battle. He is strong, but he recovers way too slow. Slower than any of the mages here in our guild." Yukino explained. "No one knows why his magic works that way, but it is what it is. I only just found out recently too."

"Should have known that you would have guessed it." Elden commented as he stretched his stiff neck and stood up. "What are we waiting for? Let's go."

"See you, Wendy!" Yukino waved at her friend and began to walk off, but was forcefully stopped when her wrist was suddenly grabbed by Elden.

"What?"

"You are coming too." Elden said with an evil gleam in his eyes. Wendy swore that she just saw a visage of a demon appearing behind Elden for just a second, similar to what Mira is capable of. "Can't have you slacking while Wendy is working her ass off."

Yukino paled.

"I-I can train on my own! Mira-nee can supervise me! Or Elf-niichan! Or Lisanna-nee!"

"They are too lenient on you." Elden didn't give Yukino any chance to argue as he trapped Yukino in a cage made of barriers and let it float beside him. "A mage can only improve if they put themselves through harsh and rigorous training. You need the training more than any of us since you are a summoner. In a real battle, people will target you, not your spirits. You need to be able to protect yourself even without your spirits' help." Elden turned back to wave a goodbye at Mira, who waved back happily with a smile on her face.

"Mira-nee! Save me!"

"Have fun! The three of you! Don't be too late!"

"Mira-nee!"

Wendy gulped. She had never seen Yukino so afraid of anything before. What had she gotten herself into?!

She glanced downstairs where Mystogan and Carla is. Mystogan gave her a sympathetic look and mouthed a 'good luck'. Lily gave her a solemn nod. Happy gave her a salute, but he makes it look as if he is sending her off to her imminent doom, like she is a soldier on a suicide mission. Seeing Carla's confused look at their reactions, Mystogan whispered something to her and Carla's jaws dropped immediately before staring back at Wendy and mouthed a 'good luck' to her as well.

Wendy felt herself beginning to sweat profusely in both nervousness and fear.

Just _what_ is she signing herself up for?!

* * *

"Hey, come on. We are not done yet."

"You… are… a… monster… El-niichan."

Wendy barely managed to nod in agreement as she and Yukino panted for breath on the ground. She had taken away Elden's fatigue as he had requested. Doing so will not reverse the side effects of his magic and his magic reserves is still low, but it allows him to be able to go on without feeling the aftermath that comes about with the extreme usage of his magic.

Elden is simply a monster in being able to keep going on doing the harsh training regime he set for them and himself despite having his reserves only about a quarter full at the most. Elden is a lot more powerful without the negative side effects of the magic affecting him.

"Stand up." Elden requested, no, _demanded_ as he crossed his arms and look at their downed form. "Your opponents won't wait for you to recover and allow you to defeat them. If I were your enemy, you will be dead right now."

Wendy and Yukino didn't argue as they clenched their teeth and stood up shakily. They had asked for training and Elden had given it to them. Is this how Elden became S Class?

"Good. Here I come."

Wendy and Yukino braced themselves for another round as Elden unleashed all kinds of attacks with his barriers at once. He had told them that he will mainly be focusing on stamina training today. His logic was that any respectable S Class mage will be expected to be able to go on fighting no matter the circumstances. It doesn't matter how tired they are or whether they are out of magic. If they want to aim to stand at the very top in this vast world of magic, they must at least be capable of this.

They must be capable enough to be able to carry on fighting, _no matter what_.

Wendy and Yukino helped each other as they pushed past their limits and tried to defend or evade Elden's attacks. Yukino is now stuck with using Libra to help her since her remaining magic reserves right now only allows her to summon Libra. Wendy is helping with her enchantments, but the enchantments are slowly losing strength since she is getting worn out.

A huge block of barrier rammed into them and sent Libra back to where she came from. The two kids spiralled in the air before tumbling into the ground below.

"Not too bad. You guys lasted for an extra five seconds this time. Take a break."

Wendy and Yukino didn't even bother replying. They are just too tired.

"Is this how you train when you were younger?" Yukino finally asked after resting for about ten minutes. "How did you survive it?"

"What do you mean survive? Don't be stupid, it's not like I'm aiming to kill you. Your lives are not in danger." Elden chided as he flicked a finger at Yukino's forehead.

"Could have fooled me." Yukino retorted, only to earn another flick on her forehead.

"If I didn't put myself through this when I was young, there's no way I would have made S Class. The weakness of my magic is too fatal if anyone else knew about it. I have to prepare myself for the inevitable when I am pushed to my absolute limit, because I know such scenarios _will_ happen one day, like our war with Phantom. I need to learn how to continue fighting in a fatigued state. Hence, I came up with this training regime, to constantly push yourself to your absolute limit and then still be able to continue fighting. Pushing yourself past your limits without overly straining yourself helps your magic container to grow too. This will be good for you two in the long run. I will help fine tune both your magic later. For now, we stick to the basics that all mages should learn and master."

"Um… Elden-san." Wendy raised a question timidly as the three of them rested under the shade of a tree. "What should I focus on after this? I want to be both a support mage and a combat mage, but I have to choose an aspect that I need to focus on first, right? Which one should I choose? Support or combat?"

"You are correct, but as to what to focus on, just choose whatever you think suits you best." Elden replied as he chugged down some water from his bottle. "Although if you really want my recommendation, try perfecting your support skills first. You have a team to go missions with, am I right? I know you and Mystogan are planning to pair up, he told me this morning. Just so the both of you know, it is not official yet, but Master will be implementing a new rule soon. Every S Class mage will have to lead or be a part of a team so that the other mages can learn from them. I had heard Master requesting Mystogan to start leading a team of his own and I know he is recruiting Team Shadow Gear together with you, Gajeel, and Lily. You will do just fine there."

Elden paused to take another drink before continuing.

"It is a perfect learning opportunity for you. Learn from their experience. Learn how to best support them with your magic. You need to learn for yourself _when_ to support, _how_ to support, _what_ to support, _which_ part of the group needs support, or whether they need the support at all. Not only that, you have to take note whether you are capable of supporting them since there will be times where you will run out of magic to continue to do so. All these comes with experience. After you get the hang of it and understand your magic better, then you can slowly work on the offensive part of it."

"I don't know how to improve my offensive skills with support magic." Wendy admitted. "Other than the healing spells which I cannot cast on myself, the only enchantments that I am familiar with and I can cast on myself are Arms, Vernier, and Armour. Enchantments that raise offensive power, speed, and defensive powers respectively. I am still not yet good enough with the more complicated enchantments that allows me to fight properly. Grandeeney didn't have time to teach me more on those since she left before she could teach me more."

"Then just use the basics. Put off perfecting the complicated ones until you master the basic ones. Just know enough of the complicated enchantments to get you out of sticky situations for now. Stop thinking that you _have_ to master everything Grandeeney knows. Learning what Grandeeney knows is important, but it does not make you any lesser if you don't learn everything from her."

Upon Wendy's confused look, Elden elaborated further.

"Every single spell in this world was invented by someone, Wendy. Whatever had worked for Grandeeney may or may not work for you. You need to carve out your own path. Start from the very basic of your magic and work your way up from there. Concentrate on what you are able to do now instead of what others before you managed to do. Natsu, Gajeel and Laxus are also Dragon Slayers like you, but what they had achieved is merely a reference. Use it as a benchmark, but you should never copy what they did blindly. Find out what suits you and what doesn't. Observe, and then think. Learn, and then grow. Emulate, but never imitate."

"Eh?"

"Look." Elden said as he patted Wendy on the head to reassure her. "I know it sounds unbelievable and that it looks like I am smoking you. But if it works, it works. Tell me, what does my barriers do at its very core?"

"Defend."

"That's it. That is the only thing my barrier can do as a support type of magic. But what makes it so good at supporting others? What makes it so good at defending?"

"It doesn't break." Yukino replied on Wendy's behalf. "I still remember the first time you took part in the 24 hour endurance race. Your barrier can take the attacks from the entire guild without a scratch on it. They did break your Fairy's Aegis in the end, but you let that happen on purpose, didn't you? The normal barrier you set up at the start of the race didn't even suffer a scratch when they blasted their magic at it. You purposely let them break Fairy's Aegis to appease them since you were being such a jerk during the race."

Elden grinned.

"Smart girl. Don't let anyone else find out though, I wouldn't hear the end of it otherwise."

Elden turned back to Wendy.

"So, going by the same logic, at the very core, what can your most basic enchantments do for you? Excluding the one that allows you to heal others? I mean the three that you mentioned. The ones that increase attack, speed, and defense of your target."

"Raise my attack, speed, and defense?" Wendy ended her response in uncertainty. It had felt like she had given a stupid response. Surely there is a deeper meaning to Elden's question?

"Bingo. I cannot help you with learning how to heal and you cannot use it on yourself, so using that to increase your combat abilities is moot. In that case, we will focus on making you extremely proficient in raising your own attack, speed, and defense. We are going to make a little dragon out of you."

Wendy blinked in bafflement. That's really it? All she have to do is to learn how to raise her attack, speed, and defense even further to be stronger?

"Don't think it will be easy because it sounds easy." As if reading her mind, Elden reprimanded her as he knocked her gently on the head with a fist.

"But I can already do all three enchantments, they _are_ easy…" Wendy complained quietly under her breath. If what she has to do to be stronger is just that, then it really is easy. She doesn't want to sound arrogant, but she had never met a better enchanter in her life before. She is a natural at this branch of magic, even Grandeeney said so.

"In that case, then I expect this from you. If you cast an attack enchantment, aim to increase your offensive powers to at least be equal to Gildarts's ability to annihilate things completely. If you cast a speed enchantment on yourself, aim to at least to be able to match Jet in speed. If you cast a defense enchantment, make sure your defense is at least as solid as mine. Since these enchantments can be casted on both yourself and your allies, once you achieve what I just said you can be both a support mage _and_ a combat mage. That is not even taking the Dragon slaying part of your magic into account like what Natsu and Gajeel usually do. You see my point now? The same goes for you, Yukino. Never forget the very core of your magic and what it is supposed to do. The basics of your magic are important. Never forget that."

Wendy's jaws dropped. That is some really high expectations. She doesn't feel so sure of herself now.

"What? Don't believe me? My barriers weren't always this solid, you know? The first time I used it I nearly fainted from exhaustion after holding it up for only a few seconds. If it wasn't for Master arriving when he did, I would be dead. The only strong point of my magic is how solid I can turn my barriers to be. And that's what I did. Now, I can make my barriers strong enough to take an attack from a Jupiter cannon. A lot of hard work was involved, but it was worth it. I had helped saved the guild from a Jupiter cannon once using my magic alone."

"But that's not all your barriers are capable of! You use it to fly, and also to create the big warrior construct, and-"

"Whoa, hold it there. That comes a lot later. You guys haven't even perfect the basics yet and you want to jump straight to the advanced level? Chill."

Wendy blushed in embarrassment. Elden's right. She is still a novice mage as compared to a seasoned fighter like him. What is she thinking trying to create advanced spells right now? She is not at that level yet.

"Well, in a sense, I do envy the type of magic you possess, Wendy. It is very versatile. I can already think of several ways for you to beat Gajeel and Natsu when you finally grow up."

"Really?" Yukino asked with wide eyes. "Wendy can really beat Gajeel and Natsu?"

"Think about it. Every living organism needs to breathe. Wendy is the Sky Dragon Slayer, she controls the very air itself. How is that not dangerous? Both you and Wendy are already very advanced for your age. I'm not too sure about Gajeel, but Natsu wasn't as strong as Wendy when he was her age."

"I find that hard to believe." Wendy muttered. "Natsu-san is strong."

"He uses fire. All you have to do is to produce winds so strong to snuff out his flames. It's like blowing out candles on a birthday cake. Gajeel has metal scales to help him and it provides a very strong defense, but all you need to do to win him is to suck out all the air around him and suffocate him. He can't do anything to you after that since he sucks at fighting ranged opponents, a very fatal flaw in my opinion. Not only that, you can probably fly across long distances if you have enough control over air, something that the both of them cannot do with their magic. I have no doubt that you will be a very strong mage one day, Wendy. Your brand of magic is just too versatile and powerful. You will definitely be S Class one day if you keep this up."

"El-niichan, what about me?"

"You need to learn how to supply more magic to your spirits, how to best fight with them, the combos you can think up with the spirits you own, how to summon multiple spirits at once, how to fight without them, how to-"

"So basically, I need to learn everything."

"Yeap. The one thing that you definitely need to have before getting to everything I just mentioned is to have at least an impressive amount of magic. For a summoner, the very core of their magic heavily hinges on how long and how many they can summon at once. To be a truly powerful summoner, you need to have magic at least as dense and as much as Mira, for starters."

Yukino gulped. Mira is scary as an opponent and the amount of raw magic she has is nothing to joke about. How will she get to Mira's level? It's just unthinkable!

"Don't worry your pretty head over it, the both of you are still young. You two will get there one day. Alright, come on! Rest time is over! Get up! Chop chop!"

Wendy and Yukino groaned in their mind but they didn't complain. Every S Class mage got their position by earning it with blood, sweat, and tears. None of them got it by sheer luck. They had devoted countless hours to practicing and honing their craft to get to where they are now.

Nothing is free in this world. If they want it, they have to work for it.

* * *

It's official, Master had made it mandatory for S Class mages to lead, or at least be a part of a team. The rationale behind it is so that the younger or inexperienced mages in their team will have the chance to learn from the guild's S Class mages. Master had made this decision after seeing improvements from non-S Class members in the Thunder God Tribe, Monster Legion, and Team Natsu, where at least an S Class mage currently is or was a part of the team. Freed, Bickslow, and Evergreen had grown under Laxus's and my leadership. The Monster Legion had also learnt a lot under me and Mira, and Team Natsu had also benefitted simply by having Erza there to guide them.

It was with these results that led Master to decide to go ahead with this rule. Not only will this action improve the guild's standing in the magical world in the long run, it will also benefit those who will be learning under the S Class mages. It will be an added responsibility to our S Class mages. Mystogan will be forming a team with Team Shadow Gear, Wendy, Gajeel, and Lily.

The only exception is Gildarts, whose magic simply doesn't work well in any team given its destructive nature. However, he has other responsibilities to fulfil as our Ace, so no one is complaining about the arrangement.

Being an S Class mage comes with responsibilities, something that most of the other members don't realise. Gildarts and Mystogan go around discreetly checking on the status of our members when they were on their jobs and then reporting back to Master with a communication lacrima, so that Master knows that his children are safe. Gildarts only temporarily stopped doing so when he decided to attempt the century quest.

It is also a common sight to see Mira helping Master out with his paperwork and managing the guild's internal affairs. Be it finance, admin matters, or even going through what the guild needs to buy and spend on a weekly basis, Mira handles it all with a little help from me if she needs it.

Erza and I are the guild's disciplinarian and we help to keep the rowdy guild in line, although I mainly let her do this particular job most of the time since she is so good at it. I mainly helped with managing our external relationships with other organisations or individuals that are not from our guild. Both Erza and I are the guild's and Master's representatives. Master regularly sends the both of us to meetings with the council or to pass important messages to the other guilds as his representative if for some reason, he cannot do it himself.

Before Laxus was excommunicated, he was the one Master sent if the council demands our help to solve some urgent problem that they need help with. Usually this involves taking out dark guilds or extremely powerful monsters lurking around somewhere. More of us S Class mages will be sent with him if the situation calls for it, but it never happened since Laxus is insanely strong. Despite their previous rocky relationship at that time, Laxus never complained even once whenever he has to fulfil his duty as the guild's S Class mage on Master's orders.

Like Spiderman's Uncle Ben said, with great power comes great responsibility. To be an S Class mage of Fairy Tail, you need to learn how to deal with and bear the responsibility that comes with the title. The title isn't given out for show.

If the prospective S Class trial candidates don't realise this, then they will never make S Class no matter how strong they are. Most of them want to become S Class as an acknowledgment of their strength, which isn't a wrong goal to strive for. But they need to learn to use their strength for others. They need to learn that a title is simply a title. Nothing more, nothing less. Having that title means nothing if you don't know the weight behind it.

They need to grow.

Master had called us S Class mages for a meeting to start planning on how we are going to test this year's candidates although he hasn't decided who will be participating in the trials yet. I know who will be chosen, what the trial is going to be, and how it will turn out. But after looking at this year's prospective candidates, I am disappointed.

None of them knows what it truly means to be an S Class mage of Fairy Tail. At least not yet.

Cana wants the title to be finally recognised by her father. Natsu wants the title as he believes that it takes him one step closer to finding his foster father. Gray wants to be S Class to catch up to what his mentor was and to one-up Lyon. Freed wants to catch up to Laxus and I. Elfman wants to catch up to Mira and show that he is equally capable as a man. Juvia and Levy wasn't even expecting to be chosen and went for the trials to try their luck. Mest was under his self-imposed mission and attended the trial with a hidden agenda while being brainwashed by his own magic.

If I have to choose one of them to promote to S Class, I will give my vote to Mest.

He is the one who will most likely know the severity and weight behind that title. He volunteered to sacrifice his time, social life, and goals just to help Master with his request. He has the habit to take things to the extreme and is overly self-sacrificial, but he knows what is important. His magic isn't strong in terms of offensive power, but he knows what responsibility is.

That mentality is what I deem to be the mentality expected from an S Class mage of Fairy Tail.

I am not undermining the other candidates' devotion to Fairy Tail, but all of their motives in attending this upcoming trial are personal ones. Granted, none of us S Class mages attended the trial with the sole goal of benefitting the guild at first, but we all realised what being S Class truly means during our own respective trial. Of course, we need the required power to even be considered for the title in the first place, but the realisation that we hit upon during our trials was what made Master decide to grant us the S Class title in the end.

To be an S Class mage is a heavy responsibility to bear, especially so in times of crisis.

As of now, none of the candidates have that S Class mentality that I expected from them. I didn't even see any shred of potential that reassure me that they might hit that realisation during the upcoming S Class trial. To me, none of them are worthy of that title yet even if some of them had reached the minimum strength to be S Class.

They need to learn. They need to realise. They need to grow.

I had wanted to slack around during the trial at first as their proctor, but after seeing the current state of the prospective S Class candidates?

I changed my mind.

I will not hold back at all. If by going all out I can make them realise what it truly means to be S Class, then that is what I will do. The amount of challenges our guild will face in the future are many and almost downright outrageous. I want them to survive with the least amount of injuries and sacrifices.

I want to help create a better future for them, and if that means that I have to bring out my full strength and my inner monster out to play-

Then so be it.

* * *

 **AN: This is just a chapter to do some character development and mainly to show my own input and spin on things regarding S Class mages. Take it as a prelude to the Tenrou arc, if that makes it easier to understand. I am someone who takes a serious view on responsibility, and I like to believe that the title of S Class is not given out just for show. In the FT world, a guild is like a family. In a family, everyone has their own responsibilities and duties to fulfil for it to be functioning. At least, if I am Makarov, I will assign some duties and responsibilities to my S Class mages since a guild master can't possibly handle everything by themselves. Being strong is nothing if you don't know how to help others with your strength.**

 **I plan to add a chapter or two before the S Class trials starts for real. I have an idea in mind on what I am going to write for these chapters, but it will take some time for them to be written out since I am busy with stuffs.**

 **As usual, hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	20. Chapter 20- Vacation

"A trip?"

"Just the two of us. We had already done our part in helping Master to prepare for the S Class trials anyway and things will get really hectic the moment the S Class fever hits the guild. We still have some time before the exams. Master had also given us permission to take a vacation, I asked him this morning."

"A vacation does sound nice. It has been a long time since we had some alone time together. Where are we going?" Mira agreed as she sat down beside me at our favourite spot by the lake. It is the winter season and the lake is partially frozen. I had also raised transparent barriers around us to block out the cold wind.

"Do you want to be surprised, or do you want to know right now?"

"Is it Balsam Village?"

"Is it that obvious?"

"You know I love the hot springs and Balsam is famous for it. Knowing you, you would have already booked a reservation at the best spa hotel at least a month ago with everything planned out. The room we will be staying at will _definitely_ have a private spa as well so that I can enjoy it."

We both chuckled at her words. Mira is right. That was exactly what I did.

"Who do you think Master will nominate for the exams?" Mira asked as she leaned onto me with her head on my shoulder as I wrapped an arm around her waist.

"Our pyro Dragon Slayer, his icy rival, your brother, Cana, and Freed are almost confirmed to be selected. They already have the minimum raw power expected from an S Class mage. All they need now is the mentality to be one."

"I still think Elfman isn't ready, but if you think he is, then he should be. You always have a better eye than me when it comes to these things. I can't say the same about your fashion sense."

I look down at my attire. It is the same usual shirt with jeans complete with my signature dark blue jacket. This attire is perfectly normal.

"I don't see anything wrong with this, Mira."

"You wear almost the same thing _everyday_. Why will you have the at least _five_ sets of the same shirt and jeans?"

"At least I don't need to experience a headache every single day deciding what to wear before I leave my house."

"I am getting you a wardrobe change when the exams are over. You need it."

"Mira-"

"You. Need. It."

"Yes ma'am."

The two of us spent some time in silence in that manner. It has been a long while since we had any quality time with each other as a couple.

"I forgot to ask, what were the results of the test you and Jellal went for? What did Porlyusica say?"

"Oh right, that." I sighed before continuing. "The results were positive. Somehow, Jellal and I are half-brothers. My Dad must have had an affair with another woman. Does that make Jellal Jellel Tyrell? Or does that make me Elden Fernandez? Wait, Fernandez must be Jellal's mother's family name. So that means, _by right_ , Jellal's real name _should_ be Jellal Tyrell."

"I wonder if that means Erza and I are going to be sisters? There is obviously something going on between her and Jellal. What did Jellal think about this entire thing?"

"We both agree to keep quiet about this for now. We won't hide it from the guild if our nakamas ask, but we are not going around to publicise it either. This will just draw unwanted attention of the wrong sorts since Jellal's name is still kind of notorious. We don't want to give the council even more firepower than they already have to try and shut our guild down. They will do anything to get Fairy Tail out of their way."

"I still don't really understand. Why will they want to do that?"

"Because we take no orders from them. In their eyes, we are too uncontrollable. We don't submit to them and we are a wild card in every sense of the word. Our only saving grace is our guild's strength. We are just too strong to be snuffed out quietly by the council and we _did_ help to take down Oracion Seis. The council cannot just uproot us without a good reason since we did them such a huge favour."

Mira nodded in understanding as she gave a lazy yawn.

"I can't wait for the exams to be over already. The holiday season will start when the exams are over. What do you think we should do?"

"Just laze about at your house? That sounds like holiday to me."

"Yukino will be really irritated if you did that."

"That makes it all the more fun. She is too easy to rile up."

"You are evil, you know that?"

I smiled at Mira as I tapped her nose lightly with a finger.

"I learn from the best."

* * *

"QUICK! TO THE BACK OF THE GUILD! IT IS FINALLY STARTING!" Macao hollered out in the middle of the guild hall at the members who are somehow still unaware at what is about to happen.

"COME PLACE YOUR BETS! GILDARTS VS EL! WHO WILL WIN?" Cana added in as she placed a big basket in front of her where the bets are collected. The wads of cash there is piling up at such a rapid rate that it seems unbelievable.

"Wendy! What are you still doing here? Quick! Let's go!"

Wendy didn't have the time to react before Yukino grabbed her and swiftly pulled her along to the huge clearing at the back of the guild. It is where some of the guild members will sometimes train if they need the space although not all of them uses it.

"Yukino, correct me if I am wrong, but Elden-san is fighting Gildarts-san?"

"YES! This will be so fun to watch! El-niichan is a lot stronger than when he fought Gildarts the last time, so this will be a lot more exciting!"

"Will the guild building still be here when they are done with it?" Carla questioned in a sceptical manner as she flew alongside the two girls. "They are monsters with how good they are with their magic."

"Don't worry, Master approved this duel and there are precautions put in place. It should be fine." Yukino reassured the exceed before scrunching up her face in thought once more. "I think."

"You **_think_**?"

"It is _Gildarts_ **_and_** _El-niichan_. If anyone can destroy the guild building despite all the precautions Master had took, it will be the two of them."

The two girls eventually made it to where the entire guild had gathered. Mystogan is already there using his staves and preparing a huge defensive magic barrier to protect the spectating guild members and the building with Master adding in some spells of his. Even Freed and Levy are on it.

This battle is going to be extremely destructive.

"ELDEN-SAMA! GO FOR IT!" Freed cheered fanatically the moment he is done with his job in helping to set up a defensive barrier with his runes.

"GO EL!" Bickslow added as his dolls cheered with him. Even Evergreen is excited.

"GAH! I DON'T KNOW WHO TO CHEER ON!" Natsu clenched both sides of his head with his hands as he looked from side to side. "I WANT BOTH OF THEM TO WIN BUT I DON'T WANT ANY OF THEM TO LOSE TOO!"

"Just shut up, matchstick."

"What did you say, ice queen?"

 **WHACK!**

"Keep quiet, I want to focus on watching this match. There is a lot to learn from the both of them and I don't want you two to disrupt my focus when the match starts, **_understand_**?" Erza said with a death glare aimed at the long-time rivals, who are already shivering in fright.

"You two should really focus on their match." Jellal added. "They are some of the most powerful S Class mages in this country short of the Wizard Saints. Not too sure about El, but Gildarts himself is definitely already on the level of a Wizard Saint. Take this as a learning opportunity. It doesn't matter even if you two aren't going to be selected for the upcoming trials, what you learn from watching this match will be equally good for you two."

Jellal's words got the people around them ( _which is basically the entire guild_ ) to nod seriously. Despite his crimes, Jellal was a Wizard Saint. No one with a working brain will brush off the advice that comes out from the mouth of a Wizard Saint when it comes to magic.

"Aye sir! Natsu, you really should listen to Jel's advice."

"Yeah, I know. But I still want to fight the both of them when I have the chance." Natsu grinned as his body starts to light itself on fire in response to his excitement. "They are what I have been trying to strive for all this time. If I can beat them, it means I will be S Class in strength. I will be a step closer to finding Igneel."

"While that is usually a nice goal to have." Lucy interrupted with a totally dead look on her face. "You are choosing the wrong people to measure against. El and Gildarts are way out of your league. At this rate, you will never be able to find Igneel. Choose someone else."

"Lucy!"

"She ain't wrong, you know." Gajeel cut in from where he is standing on the top of a tree so that he can have a better view when the match finally starts. "The Aegis is pretty damn strong despite his lazy behaviour. If he was in Phantom, he would easily be our Ace. No buts, ifs, or maybes. He destroyed my defence with a single fucking flower petal."

"That's _you_ , metal face, I'm not surprised."

"What did you say, Salamander? You asking for a fight, huh?!"

 **BAM!**

"I see that my earlier words haven't sunk into that sorry excuse of a brain." Erza stated with faux calmness as everyone around her starts to cower in fear, including Jellal. "Maybe I should take some precautions to ensure that I can fully focus on the fight later on."

" _EEEK_! ERZA, WE ARE SORRY!"

"Hopeless, the lot of them." Levy shook her head as Lucy laughed at the words of the fellow bookworm.

"For some reason, I really want Elden-san to win." Wendy piped up as she and Yukino wriggled their way to the front of the group. "If he can win, then he would have proved that it is not impossible for a support type magic to be stronger than one that is naturally created for combat."

"And that is the wrong thinking to have, Wendy." Mira corrected as she gently tapped on Wendy's head from behind with her knuckle. "There's no such thing as one magic being stronger than the other. It all depends on how the user uses his or her own magic. If there is one thing El is better than everyone else here, it is his creativity. He is a genius when it comes to finding ways to exploit the properties of his magic and then use his findings to come up with unthinkable ways to surprise his opponents."

"Mira is right." Mystogan added in his two cents as he finally finished preparing the barriers. "You need more than raw power to be S Class. Gildarts may not seem like it due to the destructive nature of his magic, but knowing how to use his magic properly is the main reason why he is still the Ace of our guild instead of us, the other S Class mages. It is not always about the power, the 'how' is equally important as well. I can give two equal mages the same magic tool but the one who truly understands its workings and knows how to use it best will come out on top. Erza's magic is mainly Requip combined with Telekinesis. Both are very common magic among mages, but her deep understanding of her magic is what made her S Class where many others fail."

"You flatter me, Mystogan. You don't have the ability to use magic and yet you are also an S Class." Erza said as she returned the praise politely.

"I got lucky in my exams. And I will have my own magic to call my own soon. The artificial magic container that my brother had imbued in my body is almost combat-ready. I just hope that he didn't give me some nonsense magic."

"Your brother is the other version of El, right? How bad can it be?" Levy questioned Mystogan with a curious look.

"The same level of brilliance as our El but the opposite personality. He is the manifestation of chaos itself when it comes to magic."

"That sounds like a cause for concern." Laki said warily as she pushed her glasses up with a finger.

"You don't know the other half of it." Mystogan replied with a shudder. "He is very clever, but sometimes he really lacks common sense in his mad pursuit for anything related to magic."

"Where's El-niichan and Gildarts? Why isn't the match starting?" Yukino complained impatiently as she looked around to spot the two mages.

"Over there." Lisanna pointed with a finger. "They are walking here."

True to Lisanna's words, Elden and Gildart strolled into the area as if they are not about to have the one of the biggest fights Fairy Tail had witnessed since its founding.

"Be prepared to give up your title of the guild's Ace today, old man. I will be going to claim it for myself."

"Hah! Say that when you finally beat me!" Gildart scoffed back as he rotates the only remaining arm attached to his torso, preparing himself for the upcoming battle. His prosthetic one is working just fine, but it will never work as well as the arm that he had lost.

"Ready?" Master Makarov asked impatiently as even he hides himself behind the safety provided by the magic barriers set up by some of their best mages. Elden had never caused any problems for him when he was on missions and even if he did, it was usually because he lost control momentarily for whatever reasons. Among his children, he caused the least damages while on his jobs.

That doesn't mean that he isn't destructive. Elden is just better at keeping himself under control as compared to his other children. Thank the deities that Elden does not have the same tendency as Natsu, he will really go bald otherwise.

"Anytime, Master. You will be having a new Ace after this."

"I'm ready too, I need to teach this kid how to respect his elders."

"GO FOR IT EL-NIICHAN!" Yukino cheered from the side as the Monster Legion cheered with her. The Thunder God Tribe joined in too.

"DON'T MAKE ME LOSE MY BET, GILDARTS!" Macao roared out together with a few of the other older members.

"Hey Wendy, not betting?" Cana said slyly as she wrapped an arm over the shoulders of the little Dragon Slayer. "You can't call yourself a member of Fairy Tail without betting at least once or twice in the guild. Even little Yuki-chan betted a few times before and she is betting on El right now."

"You are a bad influence, Cana." Levy said with her hands on her hips in a disapproving manner. "But damn, you are actually right about this. I cannot think of anyone who hasn't bet yet other than Wendy and Carla. Even Lily and Mystogan had betted a few times here and there and Lily had only just joined the guild."

"Betting is like a guild tradition." Jet nodded in agreement.

"We are famous for being able to destroy public property, but among ourselves, it is also a requirement to be good at betting to call ourselves a true member of Fairy Tail." Droy added to the words of his rival and best friend. "It is what we are good at."

" **DON'T BE SO DAMN PROUD FOR THESE USELESS THINGS**!" Makarov roared out with an enlarged head and his eyes shining with a bright light from the use of his Titan magic, his booming voice creating a violent wind so strong that it nearly blew some of the smaller members away. " **THIS IS WHY I CAN NEVER RETIRE!** "

"But Master, even you betted on this match." Cana replied without a care in the world. "You placed the largest bet too." Cana then turned back to Wendy. "So, who are you betting on?"

"Um…" Wendy said in an unsure manner before coming to a decision.

"Can I bet that none of them will win? Personally, I want Elden-san to win, but I feel bad if I bet one of them over the other."

"Eh, that's fine. As long as you are sure about this." Cana said in surprise even if she got over it as quickly as it came.

"Wendy, really?" Wakaba said in curiosity before he turned to Cana. "And Cana, who did Master bet on?"

"AHEM. ** _Moving on_** ," Master Makarov coughed into his fist as he swiftly cut his other palm down in a chopping motion to prevent Cana from ratting him out even further. "Match start!"

Elden and Gildarts didn't waste any time as they both immediately clashed with their powers. A huge wall of barriers smashed at Gildarts as he stood his ground and stopped its advance with a single palm. Gildarts closed his fist and clenched it, breaking the barrier immediately.

"EEEK!"

"Ice-make: Shield!"

Gray quickly created a shield of ice to defend the spectators. That force of the blow alone had destroyed the magic barriers set up to defend them. The kids at the front were nearly blown away by the force of the attacks if it wasn't for his quick reaction.

"Unbelievable." Levy breathed out from where she had hidden herself behind Lucy at the unexpected force earlier. "Our defensive barriers were destroyed in just a single hit without even them meaning to."

"We all need to retreat backwards." Master Makarov immediately commanded the group. "They are really going at nearly their full strength. Get back if you idiots want to live to see the next sunrise."

Without further ado, everyone who is not part of the battle retreated a safe distance away as Elden and Gildarts duked it out. Their immediate vicinity had already been grinded into a wasteland.

"Shinra Tensei!"

"You know that won't work on me! Try harder, El!"

With a simple punch, Elden's invisible barriers got demolished into pieces. Elden flicked his fingers and the small pieces immediately began to bombard Gildarts from all directions.

"HAH!"

The raw blast of Gildart's magic annihilated any trace of Elden's barriers. However, that was merely a smokescreen that Elden had used to buy some time.

"I know the both of us are banned from using our biggest techniques if we don't want to reduce Magnolia into a smoking heap, but that doesn't mean I don't have any other tricks up my sleeve, Gildarts. I am warning you, this is a true offensive spell of my Barrier magic. You will die if you underestimate it."

Gildarts gave a huge savage grin at Elden's words.

" _Bring it_ , _kiddo_. I am coming at you with the intent to kill as well."

"Intent to kill?" Wendy gasped out with her hands over her mouth. "Master! This-"

"This is what S Class mages are really capable of if they have to fight each other at full strength." Master Makarov interrupted Wendy as he crossed his arms while watching two of his strongest mages charging up their power. "If you want to be S Class, you need to be able to go into a fight with the intent to kill if the situation calls for it. These two are arguably our strongest mages. At his current growth rate, El will probably reach the level of a Wizard Saint in about a year or two, give or take. I advise everyone here to watch and learn, even the existing S Class mages. What you need to learn is their combat experience that they are displaying, something that you can only observe when they go all out. Like what Elden used to say to the younger ones all the time: Observe, and then think. Learn, and then grow. Emulate, but never imitate. Some of the wisest words I had ever heard if I do say so myself."

"El-nii did say that to me a few times when he was teaching me about magic." Romeo confirmed with a nod of his head. "But I still don't really understand what he is talking about."

"You will in time, Romeo." Natsu assured him by ruffling his hair with a hand. "Gramps is right, there's still a lot that we can all learn from each other."

The power that the two S Class mages were exuding suddenly vanished. However, none of the stronger members were foolish enough to think that the battle had dropped in intensity. If anything, the pace of the battle had just amped up. The pressure that the two mages is giving off can still be felt in the air.

"Fairy Thread"

Elden gave a simple yet swift swipe with his finger as if commanding something invisible. Gildarts had immediately ducked down and rolled to safety, his years of battle instinct was the only thing that had saved him from being decapitated.

"El... He… **_What_** did he do?!" Gray cried out in shock at how everything in the direction that Elden's finger had just swiped was sliced into two neat segments. All the trees in the affected area were felled with a single, simple swipe.

"He said _Thread_ , right?" Levy narrowed her eyes as she tried to take a better look. "Is there a string somewhere?"

Gildarts sensed the danger of Elden's new technique and immediately tried to get close, planning to take Elden out immediately before he can create more problems for him. Elden defended himself with a Fairy's Adamantine Sphere and Gildarts have to immediately jumped out of the way after that failed attempt. His previous position was laced with cuts and he would have been dismembered had he lingered there for even a second longer. Even he isn't sure if his Crush magic can save him from the sheer offensive power of the unseen attack.

"Excess Whip String"

A thick rope of string that is actually made from the condensation of many small, particle-like barriers made its appearance and whipped at Gildarts as Elden swung his arms in an arc. Everything that was in the rope's path was obliterated.

It may look like a normal rope, but the amount of damage caused is unreal.

"Don't underestimate me, brat! ALL CRUSH!"

"GILDARTS! I SAID THAT I FORBADE THAT SPELL FROM BEING USED!" Makarov roared out in fury but his words went unheard by the guild's Ace.

Gildarts thrust his hand forward and a cross-shaped blast of condensed energy was launched to disintegrate Elden's spell. The collision of both spells shook the very earth itself and the energy was dispersed upwards into the sky in a bright pillar of light.

"Thanks, Mystogan. You just saved all of us." Mira muttered just as Mystogan lowered one of his staves that he was holding in his hand all along. Mystogan had redirected the excess magic thrown about into the sky to prevent the force of it from spreading any further and harming them as a result.

"This just made me realise how much more I have to improve to reach their level." Erza said with a clenched fist. "I have been slacking way too much. This is unacceptable."

"Isn't El very lazy? How did he managed to be this powerful?" Max questioned no one in particular as El and Gildarts are now competing in a series of blows. El had conjured his signature spell, Fairy's Aegis, on both of his arms and is now using the two shields to try and best Gildarts in close combat. Each of their strikes had left a sonic boom in their wake.

"You just don't see how hardworking he really is behind that lazy facade." Bickslow commented. "All you are seeing now is the result, you didn't see the process. You didn't see how he trained himself when he was younger when he was still a member of the Thunder God Tribe. He is a madman when it comes to training. Even Laxus wasn't as crazy."

"God fucking damn it." Gajeel's sentiment seemed to echo with Erza's as well from the way he had cursed. "Compared to the both of them, we are like fucking kittens. They are not even at their best because Master forbade them from really going all out, and already they are so much stronger than us."

"Hey, I take offense to that." Lily said with an annoyed look on his face. "What's wrong with being a cat?"

A wave of pink petals rained down upon Gildarts as he destroyed them with another blast of his magic. Gildarts dashed forward to inflict a powerful blow on Elden but Elden blocked it with another masterful use of his magic.

"This battle is going nowhere with how defensive we are playing this." Gildarts complained as he skidded backwards from the impact. "This is getting boring."

"I agree." Elden said as he remained unmoving from his previous position. "We need to really start to get serious. Warm up is over."

"Oi, oi." Makarov started to warn his two mages with a look of panic in his eyes. "Don't you guys dare to-"

"SUSANOO!"

"GOD DAMN IT ELDEN! NOT YOU TOO! YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE THE SENSIBLE ONE HERE!"

Ignoring Makarov's cry, the full form of the mighty warrior slammed a single fist on Gildarts, who was too slow in running away and is now using his physical strength to prevent himself from getting crushed into paste with his arms alone.

"ARRRRRGHHHH!"

With a shout, Gildarts throw the fist away from him and knife-chopped the arm of the titan, shattering the construct's limb immediately.

The incoming leg of the titan was Elden's response as the kick from it pummelled Gildarts away at high speed and sent him crashing into the nearby Lake Sciliora. The impact of Gildarts hitting the water created an artificial tsunami wave that Elden had easily stopped with his magic as his construct began to fire arrows after arrows at where he guess Gildarts will be.

"STOP IT! THE BOTH OF YOU! I DIDN'T ALLOW THE USE OF SUSANOO! GILDARTS! I EXPECTED BETTER FROM YOU! STOP GOADING EL!"

Makarov's words were ignored as Gildarts re-emerged with a war cry and punched Susanoo, rattling it and cracking the construct in several places. Gildarts didn't let up and continued to punch Susanoo at a rapid pace too fast for most of the guild members to keep up with their eyes.

"CRUSHING EVIL, SPREADING THE TRUTH: EMPYREAN!" Gildarts bellowed out before releasing one last powerful punch. " **BREAK**!"

The guild could only watch in a mixture of awe, fear, and bewilderment as Elden's Susanoo got launched into the air from Gildart's strike. The construct broke into pieces and revealed Elden, who remained unharmed thanks to the protection offered by the titan.

"GETSUGA TENSHO!"

A gigantic and sharp crescent wave of Elden's barriers fly towards Fairy Tail's Ace and pushed Gildarts back, who had resorted to defend himself with his bare hands. Despite that, Gildarts is actually _smiling_.

"Not bad, EL! You are giving this old man a workout!"

Gildarts shattered Elden's attack once more as Elden landed safely back onto the ground.

"Tch, you can destroy every attack of mine just as I can defend myself against every attack of yours. This is almost like what happened last time. It all boils down to who has more stamina."

"That seems to be a major problem for you, if I recall my facts right." Gildarts thought out loud with a tilt of his head.

"Yeah, but the outcome will be different this time." Elden said as he got into a stance and Gildarts responded in kind. "I am going to defeat you."

"Come, El!"

The two S Class mages dashed to meet each other once more in combat, only to be punched into the lake by a gigantic fist.

"WHICH PART OF **_STOP_** DID YOU MORONS NOT UNDERSTAND? THE BOTH OF YOU ARE GOING TO DESTROY THE WHOLE OF MAGNOLIA AT THIS RATE!"

"Master! Calm down! Don't go all big on us!"

Makarov is already in his full titan form as he batted the two misbehaving S Class mages away like ping pong balls, who had put their battle aside in an effort to run away from their enraged guild master.

"Master! Stop! We plead guilty!"

" **GET BACK HERE**! THE BOTH OF YOU! Especially **YOU** , Gildarts! What were you thinking, using your strongest spells?! I said that they were **_FORBIDDEN_** in Magnolia!"

"El, now is the time for you to use that warrior thing! We need to run!"

"It is every man for himself, old man!"

"Wait, WHAT?! You bloody traitor!"

The rest of the guild watched on as their guild master went about demolishing the two S Class mages in question, who were helpless in the face of the legendary titan.

"So." Yukino slowly broke the silence as she purposely drew out the length of her words. "Master wins?"

"Master wins." Erza confirmed with a nod of her head.

"Hey, wait a damn sec." Gajeel immediately pointed a finger at Wendy as the realisation kicks in. "That means the squirt wins all of the money from the bet! She was the only one who betted that none of the two will win!"

"Does that mean that Master just ruined any chances of him winning his own bet?" Gray asked as he said this with a thinking pose, oblivious to the lovestruck gooey eyes Juvia is using to look at him from where she is hiding behind a tree.

"He sure did. He is going to tear out his hair when we tell him later." Cana replied as Makarov gave chase to Gildarts and Elden in his Titan form, who are now forced to band together out of necessity to escape Makarov's wrath and trying to head out of Magnolia for the sake of their lives.

"You guys act as if everything that just happened is normal for you." Lily huffed out from where he is floating in midair with his wings, still a little shaken by what he saw. "There is an angry titan right in front of us for crying out loud."

"Eh, we are Fairy Tail. You will get used to it soon enough." Jellal waved it off with a hand. "I also needed time to adjust to the madness in this guild. Word of advice, don't think too hard on things or try to find a logical reason behind everything here. You will just go insane. Take the advice from someone who had already gone through the process. I gave up trying to understand after a week."

Lily turned to look at Mystogan for confirmation.

"The other me isn't wrong. It is better to not question and just accept it and move along." Mystogan answered with a shrug.

"No offense, but you guys are crazy."

"Never said we weren't, Lily. Crazy is how people identify us as Fairy Tail mages." Jet said as he whistled at the sight of Makarov finally catching up to the two S Class mages and punting them into the air, sending them flying beyond the horizon. They will not be able to get back to Magnolia for a while.

"How far did you think they will go?" Natsu asked as he tried to spot the two S Class mages with a hand over the top of his eyes and squinting really hard to get a better look.

"I bet at least two towns over." Yukino said immediately.

"Three. You see the trajectory? That got to be some crazy flight the two of them are experiencing." Alzack corrected Yukino as he used a scientific explanation to explain the prediction he made.

"No, that couldn't be. I am betting on just one town. Master didn't use a lot of force behind that hit." Macao disagreed as he mimicked Natsu's action and tried to see how far the two S Class mage are really flying from Makarov's punch.

"Alright! Another round! Place your bets, everyone!" Cana shouted over the din as she placed another huge basket in front of her once more.

"Yeah, come on! Another bet! Time to earn back my losses!"

"I say four towns!"

"You idiot, it's obviously two!"

Lily sighed as the entire guild began to bet once more, prompting a laugh from the few around him.

"There we go again."

* * *

"OUCH! Lighter, Mira! YEOW!"

"That's what you get for challenging Gildarts, so don't complain."

"Most of the bruises were from Master." I grumbled before a sharp stab of pain made me yelp once more.

"Or maybe I can help to bandage your wounds, El-niichan." Yukino chipped in with an evil twinkle in her eyes.

"You mean hurt me further."

"Why will I do that?" Yukino said with puppy eyes and put up a face of faux innocence. Anyone else who don't know any better would have been tricked by such a cutesy face, but not me.

She is my little sister. I know how evil she can be behind that angelic face. She has the entire Magnolia wrapped around her finger and everyone thinks that she is the very definition of harmless and innocent.

If only they knew.

"You and Mira-nee are going for a vacation tomorrow, right?"

"Yeah, we are. Don't get yourself into trouble while we are away, ok?"

"You just jinxed it, El." Mira said with a sigh. "Now she _will_ get herself into trouble."

"Mira-nee! Not you too! Have some faith in me!"

"I do have faith in you. I have faith that you will get yourself into some trouble somehow."

"Mira-nee!" Yukino protested as she took out a sheet of paper from somewhere. "I won't get into trouble! Look! I even have a schedule plan out for the period when you two are away! I will be training with Wendy most of the time!"

Mira and I both look at her schedule. It looks harmless enough, but that is what got us worried.

"I don't think things will go according to plan, Yukino. Things never go according to plan when it comes to us. Look at the time when we went to Akane Beach for vacation."

Yukino huffed as she kept her schedule away and turned her head to one side. She tried to look mature and angry as she did so, but it only made her so much cuter.

Mira and I are trying very hard not to laugh and coo over her. Especially Mira, with how her shoulders are trembling.

"I'm not talking to the both of you. Lisanna-nee is so much nicer than the two of you."

"Too bad then." I purposely gave an exaggerated sigh as I slowly took out a silver key from my pocket. I had chanced upon it by accident and had bought it immediately despite the hefty price. Thank goodness I am an S Class mage; I would not have been able to afford it otherwise.

I can see Yukino's eye widening dramatically and her hand reaching out for the key unconsciously. I purposely lifted the key out of her reach and let it disappear back into my requip space.

"Ah, Mira, it seems like our little imoto does not want to speak with us. Let's go find Lucy, shall we?"

"Yup!" Mira replied happily as she wrapped her arms around mine and we both moved to walk out of the door, leaving a stunned Yukino behind.

"Wait! That is the Gate of the Bear Cub! El-niichan! Wait! Wait for me!"

Mira and I suppressed a snigger as Yukino tried to catch up to us.

Too easy.

* * *

"Come on, Mira. You can do it."

"No!" Mira wailed as she clutched onto the handrails as if her life depended on it. We are both wearing winter clothing as it is the winter season and the weather is cold enough for the lake in Balsam village to be completely frozen. Due to this, someone had built a temporary skating rink for people to enjoy during the winter season. I had suggested to Mira to try ice skating when she mentioned offhandedly that she never tried it before.

It is our third day here and we are enjoying every single moment of it. The both of us have no real need to do exciting stuffs. Even walking around hand in hand and spending time in silence watching people go about doing their business is enjoyable for us. We are the type of people who enjoy the simple company of our beloved, even if it is just spending time beside them doing nothing.

Back to the main issue at hand.

Mira may be an S Class mage who have braved through unsurmountable challenges, fought powerful demons and monsters, curb stomped dangerous dark guilds by her lonesome and is defiant enough to even spit at a Wizard Saint on Jose's level. But somehow, she can't just seem to muster enough courage to take a single step forward in those skates of hers.

"Mira, you _won't_ fall. **I'm here**. Besides, you suffered worse on your missions. A scrap or two won't kill you, you won't even feel it."

Mira returned a glare at me that would have burnt through me if she could.

" ** _This_**. Is the scariest thing I have ever tried out. I hate you, El."

"Love you too, Mira." I replied with a grin. "Come on, just remember what I told you. Position your feet in a V shape. Push with one foot, let the other glide, then use the other foot to push while the next foot glides this time. Keep repeating, and you will eventually start to move. You just need to take the first step."

Mira looked at her feet before looking at me where I am standing about five meters away from her. It's just a short five meters, but she looks as if I am standing at the other end with an ocean in between us.

"Come help me out, EL! I date you for a reason!"

"I _am_ helping. You just need to take the first step." I said in the most encouraging tone I can manage and gently beckoned her to come to me with my hands.

"Come _over_ here and help me out! I am going to slip- **_EEEK_**!"

I pushed myself forward and caught Mira immediately, who had somehow lost her balance even while she was standing still and holding onto the handrail.

"See? I'm here to catch you. There's no need to be afraid."

That little ' _EEK'_ was extremely cute too, not that I will tell her that if I want to live to see tomorrow's sunrise.

Mira puffed up her cheeks and glared at me as I helped her to stand upright again. I gently brushed away the stray strands of her ivory white hair behind her ear.

"Alright, remember, always lean forward so that you will fall face down instead of backwards. Trust me, you don't want to accidentally hurt your spine by falling backwards. If you fall forward-"

"I can use my arms to break my fall, I know." Mira pouted. "But it is just so hard to balance myself."

"It is not really about the balance; it is about your mindset. You can never walk forward if you are always afraid of falling. You need to put your fear of falling aside if you want to learn how to skate." I said as my hands went to hold onto hers. "Come, follow my steps. Slowly now. One, two, one, two."

I slowly guided Mira as I skated backwards while holding onto her hands. Mira started to follow me as she skated forward in my direction while holding my hands as support. I saw a happy smile breaking out on her face the moment we finished one round around the small lake where we are at.

"Alright, I'm letting go now."

"Wait! El, don't-"

I didn't wait for her to finish as I let go of her hands and skated backwards out of her reach. I continued to skate at a constant speed away from her as Mira tried her best to adjust her balance without me there to support her. This time, however, she didn't fall despite how she flailed her arms around to maintain her balance.

"El! Get back here!"

"I'm just right here. Come catch me, c'mon."

Mira picked up her pace as she started to chase after me. I laughed as I skated out of her reach, constantly teasing her as we continue this impromptu cat-and-mouse game.

"See?" I said as I caught Mira in my arms and endured her fists beating on my chest as she threw a small tantrum. "Look. You just skated one entire round around the lake, by yourself."

Mira turned around upon my words. Like I said, she had unknowingly skated one round around the lake by herself when she was attempting to catch me in her angry quest to enact revenge on me for letting go of her hand without any warning.

"You need to learn how to let go of your fears, Mira. You need to learn how to move forward." I whispered to her as I hugged her so that she can lean on me to prevent her from slipping and falling down again. "Sometimes, all you need to do is to cast away your fears and then take the first step. Everything will be easier after that. As much as I want to, I can't promise you that I will be here with you forever. We are S Class mages, there will always be a small possibility that I will not return from one unlucky mission that went belly up no matter how strong I may be. Gildarts himself nearly died on his century quest. If even he barely survived, it shows us how dangerous this world can be."

"El." Mira said worriedly as she looked back up at me. "What's wrong? Are you ok? Why this talk all of a sudden?"

"Gildarts's mission got me thinking, that's all." I dismissed her worry as I leaned in to touch her forehead with mine. "But I can promise you this: No matter how impossible the situation may be, I will always try my best to return back to you and our family. Doesn't matter if it will take months or even years, I will fight even the Gods if it means returning back to your side."

"You are always so cheesy." Mira stuck out her tongue at me childishly like what she did often when she was younger. "But I love it anyway."

"I love you, Mira." I reply with another cheesy line that got her blushing. She always falls for it.

"Not here, nitwit. People are watching." Mira pinched my waist with her fingers as her face heated up in embarrassment.

"Let them watch. There's nothing wrong with me flirting with my girlfriend. Come on, let's skate another round. I will teach you a few simple tricks at the same time. If you want, we can bring our siblings to skate after the exams and this time we can both laugh at them."

"That is such an evil thing to do, El." Mira chided me as I held her hand once more and this time, we skated side by side at a leisurely pace. "But I like the idea. I had taught you well, it seems."

"You sure did, Mira-sensei. You sure did."

* * *

"Yummy!" Mira chirped out as we both enjoyed a sumptuous meal in our room. The skating session had gotten her very hungry.

"Slow down, you will choke at this rate."

"Don't care, I'm _sooo_ hungry. Let's go ice skating tomorrow again! Today's session was fun!"

"Sure." I replied with a small smile as I gaze at her. As long as she is happy, I'm fine with whatever she chooses to do for our vacation.

The both of us soon finished our meal. We lazed about on the bed for a few hours as we both read a novel together with Mira's head resting on my chest.

"I don't like how the protagonist just up and left the heroine." Mira commented.

"I think there is a hidden story that the author is purposely not telling us." I offered my opinion as I flipped to the next page to continue reading. "Maybe there will be an explanation later on."

"Hopefully. That guy was a jerk for doing that to the heroine."

"Perhaps. But let's wait before coming to a judgement, yeah? We should always try to get the full picture before coming to a conclusion."

Mira gave a yawn before taking the book out of my hands.

"I'm sleepy. I'm going to take a bath first before turning in." She said in a suggestive manner as she leaned her face towards mine.

"Definitely a better story than the one in the book." I said as I took her by surprise by carrying her bridal style in one swift motion and walked towards the bathroom, which is a private spa for our use. I had purposely booked this VIP room for our vacation so that Mira can enjoy her spas as much as she like.

"EL! Stop giving me heart attacks!"

"Life is more interesting this way, don't you think?"

"EL!"

* * *

Mira groaned as the sunlight that shined in through their windows assaulted her eyes. She shifted her body to get some much-needed warmth and latched onto Elden before opening her eyes.

El is still asleep and snoring away. Mira got herself lost in her thoughts as she watches Elden's sleeping face. Her gaze trailed downwards before she realised the state of undress that they are in and she blushed.

She wasn't sure what really gave them the final push, but they finally done the deed last night. The mood was somehow just right even if they both never intended for it to happen. Both of them are pretty open to the idea of sex even if they had never tried it out until last night. They weren't planning on it to happen either, it just happened.

No regrets though, that was the best night she had ever experienced.

If her memory serves her right, she was the one who initiated it, because her boyfriend is _Elden_. Elden is always a little too respectful to everyone's opinions and thus rarely initiate anything since he always has this nagging thought that people may not like what he suggested. He can afford to be a little pushier and more forceful instead of being so passive. But that is what makes him El. The El that she loves so much that it can drive her crazy.

Mira lay on her stomach and propped her head up by resting her chin on her hands, which is supported by her elbow resting on the surface of the bed.

Her boyfriend can be really infuriating to deal with sometimes due to his social awkwardness. He also sucks at keeping things from her. Did he really think he can hide the rings from her? Nothing escapes her eyes when it comes to him. She knew him like the back of her hand just as he knows her.

Mira let a silly smile work its way up her face at the thought of the rings she had found in his room, hidden beneath a floorboard. The rings are beautiful, she cannot wait to try them on already. Knowing Elden, he would have probably plan to propose to her after the exams when all the busy stuffs had ended so that they can truly bask in the happiness. Her siblings are definitely out of the loop from how normal they are behaving, probably an effort on Elden's part to prevent her from getting wind on what he is planning since she knows her siblings too well. That means that at the very least, the Thunder God Tribe is involved with helping him plan on how he will propose to her. Elden may or may not enlist the help of other members of their guild, but that isn't really important right now.

Elden is planning on proposing to her and she will say yes. Before they know it, they will be married to each other and she will be Mira Tyrell. In the blink of an eye, maybe another year or two from now, they will have a kid or two of their own. If they have magic, which will probably be the case since they are both accomplished mages, they will teach them how to use their magic with their siblings helping out as well. They will be good aunts and uncles to their nieces and nephews. Erza will definitely claim the rights to be their kids' godmother while Elden will ask her for permission to let Laxus be their kids' godfather. The Thunder God Tribe will definitely try to be the coolest aunts and uncles to their kids as well.

Their kids will be the most scarily protected kids in Fiore's history if things do pan out like what she had imagined to happen in the near future.

Everything will be perfect.

Mira was brought out of her daydream as Elden shifted a little. He gave a yawn and opened his eyes.

"Morning, El." Mira greeted as she planted a kiss on his cheek.

"Morning, Mira. How are you feeling?"

"Like I just got myself flattened by Mt Hakobe. I'm feeling sore all over thanks to you." Mira glared at her lover and purposely did a pout to make her displeasure known.

"I'm not the one screaming 'more' repeatedly. You wanted me to go faster too."

Mira sent the harshest glare she can manage although there's no hiding the blush exploding on her face.

"Shut up, El."

"Another round? It's still too early to get up anyway."

Mira slapped Elden playfully on his chest without any real force to it at the suggestion. At least this time, he is taking the initiative.

"Fine. But this time, I want to be the one on top."

"Yes ma'am."

El did a single salute with his hand as Mira climbed on top of Elden and pinched his nose. El returned the gesture by squeezing her butt cheeks naughtily with his other hand.

"One day, I'm going to tie you up and have my way with you."

"I'm not into masochism, Mira."

"Too bad, I am. Deal with it."

"In that case, can I tie you up instead?"

"I want to be the one doing the dominating. Suck it up."

"Mira…"

"That, or no sex."

"… Your wish is my command, Mira-sama."

"Now that is what I want to hear, my little minion." Mira replied mischievously as she patted El on the head with a single hand like how she pets a puppy. "I like how you address me earlier. Do it again."

"Must I?"

"You think?" Mira countered as she slowly moved to get out of bed.

"Mira-sama."

Mira smirked as she aborted her earlier actions and went back to snuggle with Elden.

"I like the sound of that."

"You will be the death of me, I just know it."

"Love you too, El." Mira whispered as she went to hug him and enjoy the shared warmth between the two of them. "On a scale of one to ten, how much do you love me?"

"Who's being the cheesy one now?" Elden replied in a dry tone at the sudden question.

"Humour me."

"It will be one divided by zero."

Mira scrunched her face up at the weird reply.

"Isn't that mathematically impossible? You cannot define a number by dividing anything with zero."

"Yeah, I love you so much that it is impossible to be define." Elden replied smoothly. "Surprise?"

Mira tried to put on a flat look, although she is sure it was in vain as she can feel her mouth stretching into a smile.

"You, Elden Tyrell, are a nerd."

"Aww, you love me anyway."

Mira gave another laugh as she buried her face into Elden's chest.

"Yes, I do. I love you anyway. Hurry up and propose to me already. I was the one who asked you whether you want us to get together as a couple, it is your turn now to pop the next big question."

"Let's see, I need to first find the perfect ring, then the perfect spot to propose, then the perfect time to do it, at the perfect moment, at the perfect circumstances so that you don't suspect a thing. When you think about it this way, it sounds like a long while before you can be Mira Tyrell."

Mira schooled her face into an annoyed look so as not to expose what she knew for sure Elden is _really_ planning. It will take only a few weeks at the most before he got down to a single knee with the ring in hand.

If she has to take a bold guess, he will most likely be proposing to her on Christmas, and then be all cheesy by telling her that he wants it to be the most special and memorable Christmas for her.

And she will still fall for it anyway.

Oh well, she will just play the role of a surprised woman when he finally gets down to it, and then reveal to him that she knew it all along on their wedding night. She needs to prepare a camera to capture his shocked look too, just so that she can share that moment with their future kids and embarrass him for life.

Mira snuggled up to Elden as they both silently chose to continue to spend the early morning in each other's embrace instead of having sexy times. That can wait.

They will have a lifetime with each other anyway.

* * *

 **AN: Finally an update at the expense of some much needed sleep on my part. I'm definitely going to feel it when I go to work tomorrow. Sorry for the late update, but I kind of lack the motivation to write anything for TAOFT until now. I don't want to write a lacklustre chapter when I have no motivation to do so. Hope you guys can understand.**

 **I had been wanting to do a El x Mira moment around this part of the story ever since I started to plan out the story's progression many months back. This is my first attempt at writing any intimate moments of romance so I have no idea how good or bad it will be. The whole point of writing it is to try out new things instead of just battles after battles. I just want to see if I have it in me to write some fluff and romance stuffs.**

 **Hope you guys enjoy this lengthy chapter *yawn*. You guys know how careless I can be with anything spelling or grammar related if you read the earlier chapters. I wanted to do another check on this chapter for anymore spelling/grammar mistakes but I am a little too lazy to reread the 9k+ words in this chapter again and it is really getting late on my side. I need to turn in soon if I want to get up on time for work tomorrow.**

 **Hope you guys enjoy the story thus far.**


	21. Chapter 21- Mystogan of Fairy Tail

"HAWWT!" Gray screamed out as he lay naked on the chair nearby.

"Why is it so damn hot at this time of the year?!" Lucy agreed with the resident ice mage of the guild as she too slumped on a chair in her swimwear. Despite the lack of clothes on her body to help cool her down, it is not helping her with the heat.

"Something about convection currents keeping this place warm throughout the year…" Wendy mumbled as she tiredly rested her head on a table and pointedly not looking at Gray's direction. She still wants to keep her innocence for as long as possible. How did Yukino stand being around Gray for so long?

"I… I don't feel so good…" Natsu groaned as he walked about the deck of the ship while swaying on his feet, causing Jet to run away from Natsu lest he spilled his lunch on him.

"Look!" Lisanna happily pointed at a small speck on the ocean that is steadily growing larger as the ship sailed closer to it. "There it is!"

"Is that Tenrou Island?!"

"An island on an island? That is our guild's sacred ground?"

"Finally!" Natsu yelled out as he temporarily pushed past his motion sickness to ignite his will to fight. "I am going to beat everyone here! I am going to become S Class!"

"Not happening in a million years, you stupid pyro. **_I_** am the one going to be S Class."

"You say something, Ice Prin…cess… _Urgh_ …"

"I'm actually impressed that Natsu can even find the energy to argue with Gray in this state." Lucy said unimpressed and in her usual dry voice, something that she had lots of chances to practice given her usual company since she joined the guild.

"These two aren't the worst I've seen." Cana said as she took another swig of some iced booze she brought onto the ship. "You should see Laxus and El going at it when they were younger. Their spats were legendary."

"Huh? Really?" Levy asked in a curious tone. "I don't think I saw them really fighting it out before."

"Oh yeah, that was before most of you joined." Cana recalled as she took a pause in drinking her favourite beverage. "Among our generation, I am the third to join the guild right behind Laxus and El. I saw them fighting it out before. Even back then, only Gildarts and Master could stop them. Ah, good times." Cana said the last part in a wistful tone before downing another huge portion of her booze.

" _Elden-san_ getting into a fight?" Wendy said with an obvious look of disbelief. "I cannot imagine that happening."

"El wasn't really interested in anything else that is not printed on a book back then, so Laxus purposely get on his nerves to get El to notice him. That was how their friendship really started." Cana continued her explanations while switching out the now empty bottle of booze for a new one. "The insults they threw at each other were pretty colourful too, now that I think about it. They stopped after a short while, so you guys didn't have the chance to see it happening."

"Sounds like a show I will pay to watch." Elfman crossed his arms as he said his thoughts out loud. "A fight between two real men."

"I will definitely get the hell out of there." Lucy said with a visible shiver running through her body despite the blazing heat. "A fight between those two will destroy the world."

"If you guys are done discussing about my wayward grandson and El." Makarov made his presence known as he stood on the upper deck and waving a fan at himself using his right hand to blow off the heat on his person. "I will now announce the details of the first exam."

With a wave of his hand, pixelated blocks of light appeared and formed a screen right beside the Third Guild Master of Fairy Tail. Lucy looked towards the right of the screen where the various candidates and their partners are being displayed.

1) Natsu & Happy

2) Gray & Wendy

3) Elfman & Evergreen

4) Freed & Bickslow

5) Cana & Lucy

6) Mest & Jet

7) Juvia & Lisanna

8) Levy & Gajeel

To be perfectly honest with herself, Lucy isn't sure if she and Cana is able to handle any of the team with just the two of them. She isn't a strong battler and while Cana is a powerful mage in her own right, her magic isn't as destructive as some of the other S Class candidates like Natsu and Elfman.

 _Can they win?_

Lucy quickly shook those negative thoughts out of her head. She is here to help Cana. Now isn't the time to be doubting their abilities.

From what their guild master is explaining to them, there are eight paths to take in the first stage of the exam. Erza, Mira, and Gildarts will be present to stop them if anyone is unlucky enough to pick those specific paths that they are waiting at.

"Hey, what about Mystogan and El?" Gray asked aloud on behalf of the rest of the S Class candidates.

"Oh, _that_." Makarov's grin grew wider and Lucy has a strong suspicion that the elder is inwardly giving an evil laughter at their imminent demise. "Why, they will be doing their best to stop you during the second stage. Remember how El made your lives absolutely miserable in his first and only participation in the 24-hour endurance road race? Now Mystogan is helping him as well."

Lucy jumped a little in fright when the faces of the more senior mages in their guild went pale. _What happened? **What** did El do?_

"Erm… Is it something we should be worried about?" Wendy asked Gray nervously, her partner for this exam.

"That was a nightmare I never wanted to live through another time if I could." Gray visibly gulped. "My face hurt for an entire week after that damn race. Thank Mavis El was banned from the race thereafter. No one else would have won."

"El was a jerk in that race." Jet complained angrily with fire burning in his eyes.

"What did he do?" Juvia asked curiously.

"He boobytrapped the entire race route with invisible barriers. Imagine running at your top speed and then running face first into one of those things."

All the newer members visibly winced. That sounds really painful.

"And now _Mystogan_ is there to help him. We are all so _screwed_." Levy whined.

"If you brats are done complaining." Makarov gave the largest shit-eating grin the Fairy Tail members had ever saw before he said those magical two words out loud.

 **"Exam start!"**

A brief moment of silence hang in the air as the seagulls squawked overhead, as if laughing at the dumbfounded Fairy Tail members.

"Wha?"

"Aren't we still out on the ocean?" Gray asked in a perplexed manner.

"Happy!" Natsu yelled out as he grabbed his stuffs and jumped into the air, allowing his partner to grab him by the back. "Let's go and choose our path first!"

"Aye sir!"

"Damn it! Stop cheating!" Elfman yelled in a threatening manner with his fists waving about, but his cries went unheard by the Dragon Slayer and his exceed partner as they start to fly towards their guild's sacred ground.

The surprise continued when Natsu and Happy crashed face first into a barrier made up of runes.

"What the hell Freed! **Stop** copying El's annoying tactics!"

* * *

"Who do you think will pass the first stage?"

"It's hard to say, Mystogan." Mystogan watched on as El continue to roast some chicken-like creature over a fire that they had just caught. It is about to be fully cooked soon. "It really depends on who they faced. I actually pity them; this year's exams look extremely difficult. We had it easy."

"Partly because we have so many S Class mages around this year." Mystogan found himself speaking in an amused tone as he accepted the meat that El had just finished roasting. Mystogan took a bite and found himself pleasantly surprised. The meat was surprisingly well done.

"I didn't know you are such a great cook."

"You can't be Mira's boyfriend without picking up some cooking skills after spending so much time with her." El replied lazily as he chewed on his own food. "She can be really picky when it comes to her food. Maybe it is because she is such a great cook herself, but she doesn't like her food overly cooked or too raw, it must be just nice."

"When are you two getting married?"

"Is it that obvious? I didn't tell anyone apart from the Thunder God Tribe, Cana, and Wendy."

"You are a lot like my own brother, so I guess I can tell the signs." Mystogan said as he finished his meal. "Need help in anything?"

"Maybe. Everything is progressing as it is supposed to be for now, but I will definitely need the guild's help when that day comes. You will know it when you see it."

The blinking of the communication lacrima that they brought with them caught their attention, signalling to them that the first stage of the exam had concluded and that they can now proceed with the second stage.

Elden stood up and dusted himself as Mystogan snuffed out the fire.

"Mystogan, shall we?"

"Let's go." Mystogan stretched his stiff neck as he picked up his staves, an uncharacteristic predatory look on his face.

"Time to show them just how strong we S Class mages really are."

* * *

"ARGH! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!"

Natsu and Happy ran away from some dinosaur thing that snapped its jaws furiously while giving chase to the two of them.

"This way!"

The duo made a sharp turn, just managing to escape the powerful jaws of this unknown creature that had made its home on Tenrou Island. Why the in the seven hells would their First Master allow such dangerous creatures to live on their sacred ground?! This is insane!

 **BANG!**

"DAMN IT EL! NOW IS NOT THE TIME TO BOOBYTRAP THE ENTIRE ISLAND WITH YOUR BARRIERS!" Natsu yelled out into the sky in frustration. This is the forty-fifth time already! He is **SICK** of running into these blasted barriers!

"Natsu! It is coming!"

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

A huge cone of explosive flames erupted from Natsu's mouth, taking the creature out.

"What the- _Why_ were we running from this guy!" Natsu kicked at the downed creature angrily. "We could have just taken it out!"

"Er… Natsu. Is that supposed to be there?"

Natsu looked to where his partner is pointing at the ground he is standing at. Right before his eyes, a bright pink magic circle starts to spin beneath them ominously. Natsu took a whiff and instantly recognised the scent of whoever was here earlier and casted this time-delayed spell as a boobytrap.

 _Oh shit._

"DAMN IT MYSTOGAN! NOT YOU TOO!"

* * *

"AIYEEEEE!"

Levy ducked her head as a barrage of magical blasts came firing at them from nowhere.

"Shrimp, jump!"

Levy wasted no time in hesitating as she heeded Gajeel's words and jumped as high as she could. A burst of magical energy blew up the ground that she was just at.

Levy gulped. This isn't what she was expecting in the second stage. The entire island had been boobytrapped by Mystogan and El! This is crazy!

"Solid Script: Guard!"

Upon the usage of her magic, Levy created a barrier for her and Gajeel that withstood the onslaught of attacks that they are currently facing. Using this short amount of time that they bought for themselves, Levy began to quickly form another spell.

"Solid Script: Radar!"

A map appeared before their eyes that marked out the areas that are boobytrapped and those that are safe for them to travel on. Both Levy and Gajeel exchanged a brief smile at each other before running into the direction that will bring them out of this madness.

"What?"

The sudden appearance of a magic circle beneath their feet caught them all by surprise as it began to glow brightly. **_How_** did her radar not detect this?!

"Gajeel, look out!"

"Shrimp!"

* * *

"OW!" Elfman cried out as he landed painfully on the ground. He let out a second yelp when Evergreen crash landed on him.

 ** _What_** the hell was that magic circle that appeared out of nowhere?!

"AHH!"

Wendy's high-pitched scream got their attention as well when she and Gray made their appearance in the same manner. Cana and Lucy fell from the sky about a second later.

"What the- Everyone is here?"

True to Gajeel's words, all the current S Class candidates and their partners who got through the first stage of the exams are now gathered in the large clearing at the same time. What is the meaning of this? Are they supposed to fight it out here to determine who advances to the third stage of the exam? How will that help them to find Mavis's grave?!

"Welcome, to the second stage of the exams. Mystogan and I will be your proctors."

Elden appeared in mid-air without any prior indication of his presence as he sat on an invisible barrier in a relaxed manner. Mystogan stood beside him as the air around him swirled.

" **YOU**!" Natsu waved his ignited fist angrily at Elden. "Get down here so that I can beat you into a pulp! You and your barriers are seriously pissing me off!"

"Oh?"

Even if there is no change in his relaxed posture, there is suddenly a sharp and dark look in Elden's eyes that got everyone on instant alert. Something is wrong.

"Well, try me. I don't even need Mystogan's help. You guys can come fight me one-on-one or together. I don't care which."

Elden floated down onto the ground and slowly walked towards the group of S Class candidates and their partners. His hands are in his pockets and he is still taking his time to walk in a leisurely manner, but the air around them had suddenly got very tense.

And also very dangerous.

"You guys think you are here on a vacation? _That this whole exam is a joke_?"

A sudden explosion of power from Elden sent everyone around him flying back. That wasn't even his Barrier magic taking physical form, just raw ethernano.

The sheer amount of magic he has is frightening.

"You S Class candidates really _piss me off_."

The uncharacteristic serious look on Elden's face caught everyone off guard. This is not the friendly and lazy El that they know.

"With your attitudes, you guys don't deserve to be S Class mages. **Shinra Tensei**."

The signature attack of Elden blasted everyone away once more without him even needing to move a finger.

"Fire Dragon's Roar!"

"Ice-Make: Lance!"

The combined attack of fire and ice were forcefully stopped in its track as a pane of barrier manifested before Elden and shielded him from harm. Elfman wasted no time in transforming his arm and let loose a powerful punch from behind, only for Elden to simply cock his head to a side to avoid that blow before throwing Elfman faraway with a powerful throw.

"What are the rest of you waiting for? Waiting for Christmas? Come at me with the intent to kill. Show me that you guys are worth my time."

"I will **_show_** you what is killing intent! Iron Dragon's Club!"

"Too slow, and too weak."

A massive fist made of barriers punched Gajeel far away as Levy caught him with a cloud she conjured with her Solid Script. Cana sent her cards flying towards Elden in a huge volley, hoping to at least nick him but they were blasted away by an invisible force.

"Open: Gate of the Scorpion, Scorpio!"

"Dispel."

A disruptive wave of magic was released from Elden's fingertip, forcefully closing the gate before it can open.

"Wha-"

"Fly."

A pillar of barrier rammed Lucy away from Cana. Wendy stood at the back as she started casting her own spell.

"Ile Arms! Ile Vernier! Ile Armour!"

Gray's attack, speed, and defence rose sharply upon receiving Wendy's aid and he went in to unleash his attacks once more.

"Ice-Make:-"

"Fall."

A large cube of barrier fell upon Gray like a meteor and crushed him into the ground, forming a huge crater in the process. A volley of energy needles blasted at Elden, courtesy of Evergreen as Natsu and Levy used the same opportunity to unleash their attacks.

"Pathetic."

A huge skeletal arm gave a mighty swipe at the area around Elden and blew everyone away from the force. Elden remained standing at the same spot that he had landed onto the ground from the air while Mystogan remains floating at where he is and watches the scene unfolding impassively.

Elden hadn't taken a single step.

"This is this year's S Class candidates? You all might as well go home now. Don't waste our time with this pathetic display."

" **I will be S Class**!" Natsu gritted out as he stood up once more, his flames coating his body in a raging inferno. "I _will_ beat you! And I _will_ find Igneel!"

"And after that?" Elden questioned with an unreadable look on his face. "What's next? What will you do with that S Class title?"

"And then…" Natsu trailed off in uncertainty. He really didn't give much thought of what will happen next after he reached S Class and found Igneel, assuming he did so.

"You don't even know what you want to do after you got the S Class title and yet you are here? Don't make me laugh." Elden scoffed as he slowly pointed to each remaining S Class candidate in turn after talking to Natsu. "You, you, you, and you. I seriously thought that you guys are better than this. As of now, none of you are ready to be S Class. None of you deserve this title."

"And **_what_** gives **_you_** the right to say that." Cana growled out in anger. "We all have our reasons to be S Class just like you did."

"Yeah, but you think this fancy title is **_just for show_**?"

Another explosive release of Elden's magic had everyone else running for cover as the Stage II version of Susanoo started to manifest itself.

"If I have to beat this into your dense heads until you idiots realise what I am driving at, I will do it. Come, don't hold back. Show me your will and determination. Show me that you have what it takes to push me to my limit."

The next sentence Elden spoke out left a chill running through their spines.

" _Show me that you guys know what it truly means to be S Class_."

* * *

"Are you sure you don't need to be there with El?"

"He can handle them alone." Mystogan said in his usual passive voice as he sat down at the camp where the eliminated participants and other S Class mages had set up to rest at. Using his staves, he had left a projection of his body with El, fooling the remaining S Class candidates to think that El and him are together.

Mystogan took another drink from his cup. During the meeting that Master Makarov had held with the current S Class mages to plan for this exam, El had suggested to use this chance to check on the magical barriers that surround their holy island. These barriers were erected a long time ago by Master Mavis and is extremely powerful. It is what hides Tenrou Island from the world and makes it impossible to find no matter what magic is used. However, no one had checked on it for a long period of time since nobody had visited Tenrou Island in years.

Master Makarov had agreed to El's suggestion. It is not everyday that they have the time to come to their guild's holy land. A periodic check on the island's magical barriers is necessary. Mystogan was given this task due to his vast understanding of different kinds of magic. Among the current S Class mages, he is the most knowledgeable about the different types of magic, something that he needs to have to wield his magic staves with great proficiency. He is the best candidate for this job.

Mystogan activated the lacrima orb at his side as he uses it to inspect the barrier from a bird's eye view. This orb is a tool of his that specialises in surveillance purposes. His Earthland self, Jellal Fernandez, is also helping out. It is still a bit awkward to interact with an alternate version of himself, but the both of them got over it quickly.

"I think we left out this spot." Jellal pointed a finger at the holographic display the lacrima is providing. Jellal's finger is pointing at a specific spot of the invisible magic barrier that Mystogan is tasked with repairing. Despite not being an official S Class mage, Master had agreed to Erza's request to bring Jellal along to help set up the island's grounds for this exam. An extra pair of hands will always be appreciated around here.

Mystogan's eyes narrowed a little. Something is off.

"I'm pretty sure El and I went through that spot before the start of the exams. There shouldn't be a hole there, even if it is a small one."

"Really?" Mira asked with a curious look. "That's weird."

"I have a bad feeling about this." Erza said as she took a pause from cooking her meal and undid the apron she tied around her. "I will go and do a quick check."

"Let me do it." Mystogan said as he stood up and grabbed his staves lying by the side. "It is the job entrusted to me in the first place. I can go help set up more traps at the same time. They will be ready once El is done toying with the rest of them." Mystogan added the last part with a rare mischievous smile on his face.

"You are evil, Mystogan." Lisanna said in a half-amused tone. "But I like the idea. Are we allowed to add in some ideas of our own as well? Please?"

"Ask Master."

Mystogan vanished in a swirl of mist and let his body float to his intended location in this intangible state. For some reason, there's an uncomfortable feeling in his gut that is telling him that something is wrong.

That feeling is growing bigger.

A hole had opened in the magical barrier that surrounds their island. If they had discovered the hole a day ago when the S Class mages first arrived here to set up for the exams before the exam candidates did, they would have just brushed it off and blamed its presence on the lack of maintenance to the magic defences of their holy island. The last time anyone had come to Tenrou Island was around ten years ago. However, Mystogan is sure that he and El had gone through that specific spot yesterday and yet somehow, the hole had remained.

Could it be that someone had reopened a hole in their barrier without them realising it?

That line of thinking got Mystogan to fly faster towards his intended location. If there is really someone or something that had managed to open a hole in the barrier that surrounds Tenrou Island, then it couldn't be anything good. He needs to stop whoever or whatever that is coming to Tenrou Island. If they are already here, then he will have to flush them out and drive them off.

He is Mystogan, an S Class mage of Fairy Tail. There's no way someone will hurt his family when he's around. He won't let them.

Not on his watch.

* * *

"We are here."

Azuma commented as he set foot on Tenrou Island with two of Caprico's subordinates. If he could, he would make haste to challenge the entirety of Fairy Tail by himself. Fairy Tail is known for the strength of their individual mages and is the legal guild that houses the most S Class mages in the whole of Fiore. However, Master Hades had given him his orders and he will have to complete it first.

The fun will have to come later. Taking down the Great Tenrou Tree takes precedence.

"Master Azuma, it seems we would have to part here."

Yomazu and Kawazu gave Azuma a polite reminder of the respective duties they had been charged with. Azuma returned his acknowledgement with a nod. The three of them made to leave the area without another exchanged word, the time they spent trying to break through the barrier surrounding Tenrou Island undetected was enough wasted time.

No, wait a second.

"Watch out!"

Azuma's warning was just in time as a blast of magic nearly took out Yomazu and Kawazu, who had managed to dodge upon the heads up. The three of them turned to their left, where a fog of dense mist began creeping in from the foliage and started to take the physical form of a man.

"The three of you have some nerve to intrude onto our sacred island. Judging from your guild mark, you guys are from Grimoire Heart?"

A tall figure wrapped with a dark blue cloak spoke coldly as he materialised from the mist. His face is totally obscured with a dark blue bandanna and a green mask. Numerous magic staves floated around him, already buzzing with power and ready to fire.

"You are strong." Azuma paid no heed to the situation as his experienced eyes immediately picked out the strength of the mage standing in front of him. "Yet, I have never heard of someone like you in Fairy Tail."

"Who I am is not important. Get out, before I make you. That includes your underlings."

"Master Azuma! Let us handle this guy!"

"No, stay back." Azuma held an arm out horizontally to stop Yomazu from taking this fight away from him. "The two of you are no match for him. Go, I will fight him."

"The three of you won't be going anywhere. Sleep."

A drowsy sensation immediately descended upon the three dark mages. No matter how they try to fight back, they cannot resist the closing of their eyes.

"Yomazu!"

"Solid Script: Sa(醒)!"

Using his powers to write the kanji for wake, the drowsy sensation was erased by Yomazu's magic.

"Solid Script? I had seen better from Levy. Two Layered Magic Circle: Unruly Explosion"

The area around the Grimoire Heart mages ruptured as they were bombarded by explosion blasts that exploded from nowhere. Azuma quickly summoned large roots from the ground and commanded them to shield his group from the attack, protecting them from further harm.

"Bleve!"

Azuma extended his right hand forward and engulfed the area in front of him in a massive explosion, returning fire with fire. The rush of flames sweeps towards the masked mage, who simply placed a magic stave in front of him before spinning it in a circle.

"Three Layered Magic Circle: Mirror Water!"

To Azuma's surprise, his attack was reflected back by a Magic circle, blasting them sky high. Despite that, he cannot help but smile. _This is it_. **_THIS_** is the fight he had been looking forward to! His blood is boiling in excitement! Calling out for him to give his all to bring this mysterious mage down!

Hades' orders be damned. Defeating this enigmatic mage now takes priority.

Azuma thrust his hands in front of him before raising them up. At the same time, large tendrils of roots burst from the ground to ensnare the mysterious mage, who simply dissolved into mist once again before reappearing in the air.

This mage can even use Air magic to levitate. Just how many different types of magic can he use?!

"Heavy Egg Rain!"

Kawazu's attack dropped down from the sky and rained on the masked mage. This displeases Azuma. He does not like his battles to be taken away from him or to be interrupted, even if he knows the two of them are only doing their job in ensuring they complete the task given to them as soon as possible.

Whatever, there is still an entire guild left for him to challenge.

Azuma extended a root and whipped it towards the mage while creating a line of explosion on the root. This is one of his favourite spells, Burst Claw. The elusive Fairy Tail mage stopped it by tapping a magic stave on the root before leaping over it in the air. The masked individual raised his right hand, which is holding a stave, and planted it vertically at his front. Immediately, four others surround him in a formation.

"Skyscraper"

Being propelled even higher up into the air wasn't what Azuma was expecting. Seeing a demon tearing a rift in the sky and reaching out to eat him is also something he never expected to see in his wildest dreams.

But if his opponent thinks that a mere illusion can fool him, then he has another thing coming.

"Solid Script: Zan(斬 )!"

Yomazu seems to share the same thought as he slashed his sword in front of him, breaking them out of the illusion instantly.

"Too late. Five Layered Magic Circle: Sacred Song!"

"Tower Burst!"

The collision of magic explosions created a crater on the ground beneath them where they are battling with each other. A _magic tool user_ , that has to be it. Azuma had heard of such mages, but he never saw one himself since mages who decided to venture onto this path are extremely rare. It is a path less travelled because becoming one demands a lot of time and effort on the mage's part. Devouring and understanding all knowledges of magic is a must, and that isn't factoring in the large amount of time needed to master them. However, the rewards are just as great. Masters in wielding magic tools are known to be extremely versatile and unpredictable, because they can utilise almost any kind of magic as long as their tools are capable of it. The speed in which his opponent casted his spells in rapid succession spoke volumes about his skills. This guy is on the level of an S Class mage. Could he be-

"You must be Mystogan." Azuma stated with certainty as the two of them stared down each other. "You are too strong to not be an S Class mage. The only S Class mage of Fairy Tail that no one had seen before is you, Mystogan."

"You are strong too." Mystogan returned the praise as he indirectly confirmed Azuma's suspicion. "And that is why I will now display my full strength."

"Tsuranuki!"

In a surprise attack, Yomazu's blade extended instantly to pierce Mystogan through his heart before he can react, but the mage deflected the blow with one of his staves. It seems that Mystogan is well-versed in close combat too. His reflexes are quick.

"Repeater magic: Sacred Song."

Groups of five magic circles surrounded the trio within a second and Azuma wasted no time in blasting the circles to oblivion before they can activate. Did Mystogan just _repeated_ his earlier spells and _multiplied_ them?! How is this possible?!

"Repeater magic: Unruly Explosion"

Hundreds of mini explosions surround themselves around Kawazu, who is too slow to react. The explosions engulfed the anthropomorphic chicken man, taking him out of the count.

"Your opponent is me! Tree Fist!"

A massive clenched fist was summoned from a tree as Azuma used it to punch Mystogan. Mystogan remained unfazed as he reflected it back to Yomazu with a usage of Mirror Water, who sliced it apart with his sword before jumping into the fray once again.

"Yomazu! Don't interfere!"

"Master Azuma! The mission-"

" **DON'T** INTERFERE!"

"It doesn't matter even if the two of you come at me together. One Layered Magic Circle: Binding Light!"

A magic circle appeared before Mystogan and a rope made of light shot out from it, tying Yomazu up. The dark mage proved his skill by cutting the rope apart with his sword before it can restrain him further.

"Folium Sica!"

A massive funnel of razor-sharp leaves homed in on Mystogan as the light mage summoned an acidic mist in front of him that melted them in seconds. Yomazu dispelled the mist with a Solid Script: Kaze (風), which summoned a huge gust of wind but Mystogan repeated that spell and sent Yomazu flying instead.

"Repeater magic: Tsuranuki"

To Azuma's and Yomazu's visible surprise, Yomazu's earlier spell was repeated against him. They can only watch as one of Mystogan's staves elongated and pierced through Yomazu with great force, bringing him down even though it was obvious that Mystogan did not kill him.

"That was…"

"I didn't say that I can only repeat my own spells, did I? This is my innate magic, Repeater. It is not as fancy like yours since its only purpose is to repeat and multiply spells that had been used in my vicinity. This magic was a gift and I only have a week's worth of experience in using it, but already I can tell that it is the best magic for a magic tool user like me. With Repeater, a single spell from a magic tool can grow to be more than a dozen in a split-second. Repeater magic: Folium Sica!"

The leaves now bend to Mystogan's will as Azuma was forced to burn them down with a Bleve. However, Mystogan appeared right in front of him the moment the explosion subsided, with a hand stretched out and reaching for his face.

"Repeater magic: Bleve!"

Azuma managed to merge himself with a nearby tree in time to escape from a repeated use of his own spell. The ability to turn any spells against the user's foes, this is definitely a troublesome ability. Still, many things don't match up. Mystogan had mentioned that he only had a week's worth of experience in using his innate magic, so does that mean that before this, he is incapable of using his innate magic? And if so, he became S Class with just his proficiency in wielding magic tools?

What an interesting fellow. A scary one too.

Using more of his own spells would mean increasing Mystogan's already impressive arsenal of spells. That means that the best course of action for Azuma would be to either take Mystogan down with the spells he had already used, or take him down in one powerful hit.

"Tower Burst!"

"Anima!"

Azuma watched in trepidation as the magic of his spell got forcefully sucked into a magic portal opened by one of Mystogan's staves. Did Mystogan just absorbed the magic fuelling Tower Burst to replenish his own? How?! **How** did he do that?! And **_what_** is needed to bring him down?!

"Repeater magic: Tower Burst! Six Layered Magic Circle: Historia's Echo!"

Six Magic circles, each of them the width of the Great Tenrou Tree's trunk surrounded Azuma as the ground erupted from beneath him, something that he is all too familiar with. Tower Burst is his own spell after all. However, the effect was obviously amplified, something he suspects is from the use of Mystogan's own spell, Historia's Echo.

Azuma emerged relatively unscathed from a dome of tightly knitted roots, something he conjured just in time to shield himself. He looked at his hands and found that his entire body is actually shaking.

"BRING IT! I WON'T LOSE!" Azuma found himself shouting in a mixture of joy, excitement, and also fear. Joy and excitement in finally finding a worthy foe, but also fear of his opponent's strength. He hasn't been pushed to this extent ever since sparring with Master Hades. Screw holding back on his other spells. So what if Mystogan is able to copy them?

If using his already used spells to take Mystogan down isn't an option, then Azuma will take him down with an overwhelming strong attack.

"Repeater Magic Secret Technique: Multi-Casting! Seven Layered Magic Circle: Corrupting Lament! Six Layered Magic Circle: Historia's Echo! Five Layered Magic Circle: Sacred Song!"

Azuma wrapped roots around the stationary Mystogan immediately the moment he saw him casting his spells. His observations of the battle so far had led him to believe that Mystogan's spell casting render him very much immobile during this time, only able to move when he is not casting a spell as large as the one he is conjuring now.

It is a window of opportunity. A small one, but an opportunity nonetheless.

Azuma merged himself partially with a tree as he used his magic to reach deep into the earth, forcefully calling upon the magic slumbering within and bending them to his will. If he had more time to prepare, he could have tapped into more of the great reserve of magic this island has.

He shook himself out of his thoughts. This is a battle. There is no place for what-ifs.

Azuma looked back at Mystogan with a bloodthirsty grin. The outcome of this fight now boils down to who can fire his spell faster. Whoever can do so will win, the other will fall.

What a thrilling fight.

" **TERRA CLAMARE**!"

Azuma used every ounce of his mental strength as he drove the magic within the earth to converge onto Mystogan, bathing him in a massive pillar of explosion. Mystogan was no more the moment the attack ended, probably reduced to ashes from the blast.

Azuma collapsed on his knees with a satisfied smile. He is thoroughly spent and exhausted. His entire body is shaking from the sheer stress of casting Terra Clamare, but it is worth it. Every drop of magic poured into this fight _was worth it_.

"I haven't declared the battle to be over yet."

The familiar voice got Azuma snapping his head back up as he saw Mystogan reappearing not far from his original position.

 _No way_

"How?"

Azuma's whisper was answered by Mystogan.

"Eight Layered Magic Circle: Divine Bulwark. It was what allowed me to defend against your spell. You shouldn't have underestimated me. I _am_ an S Class mage of Fairy Tail. This is the power of what Fairy Tail's S Class mages truly wield. Now, let me return the favour."

Mystogan pointed a single stave in Azuma's direction. There is no use in defending or escaping now, he had overused his magic. Even if Mystogan doesn't finish him off, the side effect of his Great Tree Arc will. At least, he can die a warrior's death at Mystogan's hands. Even in face of his impending doom, Azuma cannot help but give his opponent a smile as he accepted his fate.

Mystogan of Fairy Tail, the one person other than Master Hades that had truly beaten him fair and square without even suffering a single scratch on his person. Azuma will engrave that name into his mind, he will bring the name of his foe that had struck him down with him into the afterlife.

A worthy foe indeed. There is no shame in losing to Mystogan. It was the right decision to come here. He has no more regrets.

"Repeater magic: Terra Clamare"

 _Thank you, Mystogan of Fairy Tail_

* * *

 **AN: The official start of the Tenrou Arc. Sorry for the delay, but I was having a major problem in the form of a writer's block for every single story of mine. Don't ask me why it happened, I have no idea either. This problem is still somewhat there, but I think I am close to ridding it.**

 **I ended up trying to get rid of the block by creating new stories, which you guys can check on my profile. I guess that method worked, to an extent, since I would not have come up with the idea of Repeater magic for Mystogan without the mini hiatus. I think this is the best magic to bestow him given his original abilities, since it can amplify his original powers further without making him too OP, and also sticking to his theme of using Magic Staves at the same time. Mystogan is from Edolas, a country known for its unique magic that is released from their magical tools. I want Mystogan's fighting style to stay the same as it is as much as possible, since I want him to be unique, a representation of Edolas and a tribute to his roots.**

 **I decided to use this opportunity to show a glimpse of Mystogan's powers and took my own personal spin on things, since his abilities were almost not explored in canon other than the small fight with Laxus. He deserves some love as an S Class mage of Fairy Tail.**

 **Once again, sorry for the wait. Hope you guys enjoyed the chapter.**


	22. Chapter 22- Preparation

"DAMN IT EL! LET US OUT OF HERE!"

"We can help too! El!"

"Do you think this is a good idea?" Erza asked the other S Class mages around, ignoring the shouts of the other S Class candidates who are now behind bars thanks to Elden's Barrier Magic, because they would have rushed off in a heat of the moment otherwise. Their fellow mages can be so impulsive and emotional at times.

"If Grimoire Heart had the nerve to invade our holy island, who is to say that they are not attacking our guild building as we speak?" Elden countered. "Phantom Lord brought the fight to us once and look at what happened."

"El's right, our guild back home is now defenceless. The core of our guild's fighting strength is all here, someone has to go back and ensure that everyone back home is alright." Jellal chipped in.

"Wouldn't it be too late even if we leave now?" Mirajane frowned as she said those words. "It took us a few days to get here from Magnolia. By the time we return back to Magnolia, it would be too late. Even if Happy can fly us straight back in a few hours at full speed, he can only carry one person."

"Mest can teleport." Mystogan said as he leaned against the wall, staves in hand. "And my spell, Historia's Echo, can magnify the effects of any spell. I can magnify his spell enough to allow him to teleport out of here and back to Magnolia in a single jump."

"Then it's settled." Makarov gave the decisive vote in a solemn tone. The last time any of them saw him like this was when he declared war against Phantom Lord months back. "This is our holy island, and while none of us like senseless bloodshed, we have to defend the resting place of our First Master. We cannot allow Grimoire Heart to desecrate her resting place. However, like what El said, we cannot leave our guild back home defenceless either. I don't know what Grimoire Heart truly wants from our guild other than Zeref himself, assuming that he is really here, but in the case that they really decided to launch an attack on our guild in Magnolia while its strength is at its weakest, then this is unfortunately the best time for them to do so. Sending the S Class candidates back to defend the guild will be the best option in case our worst fears came to pass. We S Class mages will wait for Grimoire Heart here."

"Gramps! Are you even listening to what you are saying?! You are planning to take out an entire dark guild, one of the core guilds of the Balam Alliance, with only _seven_ people?!" Gray shouted as he banged his fists against the walls of the barrier prison that Elden had trapped them in.

"You are misunderstanding something here, Gray." Gildarts drawled out as he rubbed the back of his head with his remaining hand. Why had this day went to shit from the get-go? He was just about to return back to Magnolia too when this happened. Can't he just take a break?

"Oh yeah?" Natsu challenged. "What are we missing then?"

"We are **S Class mages**. Unlike you twerps, who haven't yet realised the significance of this title. Because of that, none of you are ready for this."

The sudden suffocating pressure released by Gildarts got every single S Class candidate and their partners gasping for air. Even then, Natsu stared back determinedly as he tried his best to fight through the pressure. An infamous dark guild is on the way here for Zeref, who happens to be here on their holy island for whatever reasons. At least that was what Mystogan had found out from the dark mages he had defeated and literally grilled the information out of them. This is their holy island, and there is no damn way that he is sitting out of this fight being _protected_ while the rest of his friends are out there putting their lives on the line defending their guild's sacred ground.

"This, Natsu, is the reason why we are staying behind and not you. We are simply better suited for this job. Until the day comes when you S Class candidates realise what it really means to be S Class, we S Class mages will be handling something of this magnitude. Winning the fight isn't the be all, end all, to every challenge you face. You need to learn how to see the larger picture at hand."

"Gild-"

"Mest. Prepare your magic." Makarov said as the small old man crossed his arms from where he is sitting on the top of a wooden barrel, interrupting Natsu. "I'm trusting you to get everyone out of here."

The Teleport Mage gritted his teeth. In face of the incoming crisis, Makarov had temporarily undone the Memory Control he inflicted on himself because his help is needed. He knows what Makarov and the S Class mages are really planning with this. Worried about the status of the rest of their guild in Magnolia is not a totally unfounded thought, but he knows better than anyone that it is a convenient excuse.

What the S Class mages really want to do is to send the non S Class mages out of Tenrou as soon as possible.

Even if they are sure they still have a few hours left to prepare against Grimoire Heart, everyone is caught unprepared by this turn of events. Like Oracion Seis, Grimoire Heart is a guild that is said to have members with the capability to wipe out individual guilds by their lonesome, the Seven Kin of Purgatory. Mystogan managed to defeat one of Grimoire Heart's Seven Kin of Purgatory, but that is largely because the nature of Mystogan's magic is well-suited against such an opponent. The stronger the opponent, the stronger Mystogan's magic will be. However, not everyone is on the level of Mystogan's power in terms of strength, and while they are all granted protection simply by being on their guild's sacred island, it is a worrying fact that Grimoire Heart somehow knows about the protection granted to them on this island. The fact that the dark mage Mystogan had defeated had decided to head for the Great Tenrou Tree the first thing he landed here shows that Grimoire Heart had intimate knowledge about Fairy Tail's secrets.

It is a secret that only their S Class mages is supposed to know, and Grimoire Heart somehow knows this as well.

"Come on, Mest! Teleport us out of El's stupid barriers!"

"I can't. Mystogan casted some sort of spell around us that restricted my magic." Mest lied. He doesn't like the method Master Makarov and the S Class mages had took to protect the rest of the guild, but the thing he hates the most is that he can actually understand **_why_** they decided to do that.

The fact that there is a possibility of Zeref, the legendary black mage, lurking around here is definitely a major factor in pushing them to decide to do what they did. No one in their guild is able to stand up to a monster like Zeref.

Of course, they could also all escape together. Mest cannot teleport everyone from here to Hargeon or Magnolia in a single jump, but he is sure that between his powers and the current S Class mages, they can definitely manage that somehow. However, Master Makarov also had a point. This is their guild's holy island. Zeref or not, the fact that Grimoire Heart had the audacity to invade their island unannounced is an insult to their guild. For their guild's honour, and also to protect the grave of their First Master, Mavis Vermillion, someone has to stay behind to give Grimoire Heart the warm welcome they deserve.

"Mest, please." Makarov said in a weary voice which tugged at his heart. This isn't the same Makarov who had steeled his heart and ordered him to infiltrate the Magic Council to gather information about the western continent, for the sake of the guild. Right now, Makarov's plea to him this time is an old man asking him to help protect his children, the future of the guild, also for the sake of the guild.

It is a lost cause trying to argue otherwise now. As much as Mest loves this guild, to the extent he is willing to erase his memories about them for the sake of his infiltration mission, his loyalty is also to the guild master. He knows that logically, this is the best course of action that the guild can take, so that in case the worst came to pass, the entire core fighting force of Fairy Tail will not perish. Some of them will live on.

The S Class mages all knows that the current S Class candidates and their partners will grow to be the guild's main fighting strength one day. Elden had obviously realised this, since he was the one to first propose getting every single non S Class mages out of here. No one knows how strong Grimoire Heart really is and whether the S Class mages alone can defeat them all by themselves, and even if they do defeat Grimoire Heart, Zeref himself is also another threat, like a ticking bomb waiting to explode.

What the S Class mages do know is that if they all fall here, then there will be no one left to defend the guild in their absence. They cannot afford to put all their eggs in a single basket.

It is a hard decision to make, but it is a collective decision the seven of them ( _if you include Jellal_ ) decided upon as S Class mages. The S Class mages are the first line of defence in times of the guild's crisis. They are supposed to be the guild's sword and shield, to protect the most important thing that makes up the guild.

Its members.

Fairy Tail would not be Fairy Tail without its members. The S Class mages are not aiming to win the upcoming battle. Fairy Tail may love a good fight, but none of them are a fan of violence. The members themselves are the one thing that their S Class mages are desperately trying to protect from both Grimoire Heart and Zeref. This is their responsibility as S Class mages, to protect the rest of the guild from harm using their own powers in the face of crisis. Each and every S Class mage in Fairy Tail have their own responsibilities and burdens to bear the moment they took up the title.

This is what it means to be S Class.

"I… understand, Master."

"WHAT THE HELL, MEST?!"

"There's no way you are leaving us out of this! I'm going to destroy this barrier! Ice-Make:-"

"Sleep."

With a single spell, Mystogan lulled every non S Class combatants into a slumber with the exception of Mest. Mystogan and Mest exchanged a look, and Mest knew what to do the moment Mystogan casted his spell.

"Repeater Magic, Six Layered Magic Circle: Historia's Echo."

Mest sucked in a deep breath as he pictured the guild's building in Magnolia in his mind's eye and prepared his magic.

For the bigger picture, for the sake of the guild. Even if his comrades blame him in the future for bringing them out of this fight when they could have stayed to assist their guild master and their S Class mages, he will take it in stride. He will take on their hatred.

He is Mest Gryder, a mage of Fairy Tail. This is for the sake of the guild.

"Direct Line."

* * *

It was a low move, but it is also the best one I can think of to get as many of my friends out of here in the shortest time possible.

In canon, one of the main reasons why everyone was so ill prepared to fight against Grimoire Heart was because there was no warning of the invasion. Everyone was too scattered, and it made it hard for Fairy Tail to properly organise a counterattack. It was why I decided to proctor the second stage of the exam and to organise it in a manner where I can group everyone together. It was so that in the case Grimoire Heart really made their presence known, it will be easier to gather everyone for us to organise a counterattack. It was why I toyed with the S Class candidates for so long, not letting them out of my sight until Mystogan sent us an emergency message to gather everyone. Mystogan's message was the first sign of trouble, that Grimoire Heart is really coming to Tenrou Island.

Unlike what was depicted in the children-friendly manga, in reality, the strength that Grimoire Heart possess is no laughing matter. Their members are definitely a lot crueller and more brutal than what canon had suggested. Each of the Seven Kin are S Class dark mages with a respectable kill count under their belt. In canon, the only S Class mages around were Erza, Mira, and Gildarts. Laxus arrived later, but he was late. Now, including me ( _and also Jellal, our unofficial S Class mage_ ), we have seven S Class mages in Fairy Tail. If we add in Laxus, who I had secretly called for his help and is already on his way here, we will have eight S Class mages available. Furthermore, Master Makarov is a Wizard Saint and Gildarts has the strength of one. It will be an equal match against the remaining six Kin, Bluenote, and Hades. The grunts of Grimoire Heart won't be an issue. Against mages of our calibre, their power means nothing to us.

I know the strength of our S Class candidates and their partners are nothing to scoff at, but I want to make a drastic change from canon, in case the 'power of canon' is so strong and unchangeable that we all somehow ended up in stasis for seven years, the one outcome I want to avoid. Mest's power is my best bet in getting them out of here. All I had to do was to convince Master Makarov to undo the Memory Control on him. Mest's Memory Control had no effect on me anyway, since I knew Mind Protection magic. I knew right from the start that something about him isn't right when he appeared, I just didn't bother to blow his cover since there wasn't a point to until now.

Mest's Teleportation Magic is created for the sole purpose of travelling. I had seriously considered letting the non S Class mages stay as well, but my goal is to allow my guild to be stronger, be better than what their canon counterparts can be. In a way, I had already succeeded with the Strauss Siblings. Elfman is the most obvious change, being able to master a Full Body Take Over even before the start of canon. If I can also clinch the seven years of stolen time for everyone, then I will do it, no matter the cost. They will need the extra seven years to prepare themselves against Zeref and his army, even if I can only remember close to jack shit about that particular part of the Fairy Tail series. This world I am living in is not fiction, not any longer.

This is reality. Death is a very real possibility here. Our enemies will not show mercy and I cannot count on our Fairy Tail luck to bail us out of every single perilous situation.

At the very least, I am determined to let the S Class candidates and their partners live the seven years that was robbed from them in canon. Natsu is the key player. He of all people needs to survive the seven years and use this extra time to become as strong as possible. Gajeel and Wendy too, since they are Dragon Slayers and it is obvious that every Dragon Slayer in the story plays a key role in the plot. I know Natsu is related to Zeref somehow based on what I can remember and if my memory serves me right, they should be brothers. Natsu is the protagonist of the Fairy Tail series for a reason. He needs to be as strong as possible for what is to come.

At the same time, I also know that Master Makarov will not leave Tenrou Island unguarded in times of crisis. Our First Master's grave is here, together with one of the three great fairy magic that Bluenote is eyeing, Fairy Glitter. We cannot afford to simply escape Tenrou Island and let Grimoire Heart pillage our sacred ground to their heart's content.

Even I wouldn't stand for that.

Thus, the only way I can think of, no matter how hard I tried, is to come to a compromise. Somebody has to stay back, that much is certain. The question is who.

The answer is painfully obvious.

The eight of us, including Laxus, are S Class mages. We are the strongest mages in Fairy Tail, the top guild of Fiore. If anyone can come out of this alive, it will be us. It is our duty as S Class mages. We are the guild's first line of defence to protect the truly important thing that makes Fairy Tail the guild we know. We need to protect our most prized possession, our members.

A family is only a family when there are members to make up the family.

Furthermore, thanks to Mystogan, this time we won't be caught unaware. I knew proposing to check on Tenrou Island's magical barriers would be the wise thing to do. Thanks to that, we managed to catch Azuma before he can cause us further harm. Unlike canon, we now have time to prepare against one of the strongest dark guilds in existence. About three hours, that is the time Mystogan had bought for us, even if he had done it unknowingly without the knowledge that I had about canon. Grimoire Heart's airship is estimated to arrive about three hours later, from what Mystogan had found out when he interrogated the two dark mages that had followed Azuma here. Mystogan had deemed Azuma too big a threat to be left alive given what he can do to the Great Tenrou Tree, so he had killed him. No one complained, since this is Grimoire Heart we are talking about. We are just glad that Mystogan returned alive and unscathed.

Now, the only question remaining is how we can get out of here as soon as possible after we drive Grimoire Heart out of here.

I have no doubt that even with eight of us S Class mages holding the fort, Fairy Tail will come out victorious. I have faith in the strength of my comrades, especially in my fellow S Class mages. I have a method that should take us out of here in the shortest time possible, but hopefully I would not need to rely on it. The best-case scenario would be to end our fight with Grimoire Heart early, and then use our ship to escape this place before Acnologia arrives.

If only I have a definite answer as to why that damn dragon decided to blast the island to oblivion in the first place in canon, or why Master Mavis's Fairy Sphere only dissipated after seven years. I have no answers to those questions other than ' _for the sake of the plot, I need a timeskip and I don't know how to do it so I decided to call upon Acnologia to blow Tenrou Island to kingdom come'_.

Seriously, Mashima, screw you. There are definitely better ways to do a timeskip.

I know if there is one thing Master Makarov prioritise above all, it is the well-being of the guild and those that he views as his children. It is a low move, but the moment I brought in the possibility that Grimoire Heart may not be only targeting our holy island, but also our guild back at Magnolia, I knew he would agree with me to send the non S Class mages back straightaway because the rest of our friends back in Magnolia are now defenceless should Grimoire Heart decide to attack Magnolia. Our S Class candidates and their partners will be able to help defend Magnolia should that happen, even without our help. I know Master Makarov would never risk the chance of any of his children coming into harm. Of course, only I would know with certainty that no one will come to harm in Magnolia, thanks to my knowledge of canon, but no one else knows that. It is also the perfect excuse to get as many of my friends out of here as possible while making sure that there is enough firepower to fight Grimoire Heart on Tenrou.

Maybe there is a better option somewhere out there that I could have taken, but this is the best one I can think of. I can only hope that I had helped to change the fates of my nakama for the better. Only time will tell.

"El?"

"I'm fine, Mira." I reassured her as I held her hand. She is the most important person to me. I love every single of my guild mates, but if I have to choose one to save, it will definitely be her. No matter what, she has to survive this.

"Are you able to continue using Satan Soul?"

"Just one more use." Mira admitted. "Satan Soul is not something I can use repeatedly without drawbacks. I had overused it during the trials."

"Stand behind me then. I will protect you."

"Trying to flirt with me right before the big battle, really?" Mira said with a smirk.

"Well, who else would I flirt with?"

"If you two lovebirds are quite done." Master Makarov grumbled from where he is sitting on a wooden barrel. "We need to discuss our strategy now."

"We have the home ground advantage." Mystogan said. "And the element of surprise is also now in our hands."

"Their main fighting force are their Seven Kin of Purgatory, Bluenote, and their guild master, Hades." Erza add on with the knowledge Mystogan had grilled out of the remaining two Grimoire Heart mages he had caught and shared with them. "Mystogan had defeated one of the Seven Kin, so that leaves us with eight S Class mages to deal with."

"We only have seven." Gildarts stated.

"Eight." I said without hesitation. No point hiding the fact that I had called for Laxus's help anymore. "Laxus gave me a way to contact him if need be, I called him. He is on his way here as we speak. We will be able to fight them on equal ground once he arrives."

"WHO gave you permission to call him?!" Makarov admonished with a chop to my head. I knew he would react in this manner since he is still mad at his grandson for what he did, but we really need all the firepower we can get. Laxus's strength is invaluable. The lacrima orb he gave me can only be used to contact him and vice versa. Unlike mobile phones in my previous world where everyone can call everyone else as long as they have each other's number, most lacrima orbs can only contact a few other registered orbs that is magically wrote into it. Most of these orbs came in a pair, only allowing communication between people who uses the paired orbs. The lacrima orbs that can communicate with any other lacrima orbs without restriction are very rare and expensive due to how hard it is to manufacture them. The only one I had saw thus far is the one sitting in Master Makarov's office.

"Uh… desperate times call for desperate measures?" I replied lamely and not-so-subtly elbowed Mira to help me out.

"El has a point, Master. And you have to admit having Laxus with us right now can only be good for us. We have to protect Master Mavis's resting place at all costs."

I sent Mira a thankful glance and she wordlessly replied with amusement dancing in her eyes.

"Damn brats." Makarov grumbled as he downed another mug of alcohol. "I'm too old for this shit."

"Do we have a plan?" Jellal, my half-brother, finally asked the million-dollar question.

"Mira's magic is partly exhausted thanks to her use of Satan Soul during the trials, she is in no condition to be our frontline fighter." Erza immediately said as the rest of us gathered around a table with the map of Tenrou Island laid out. "From what we know, Grimoire Heart travels with the use of an airship, so what we can do now is to first find out from which direction they are coming from and plan from there."

"If it is an airship, then they will definitely be coming from here." Jellal pointed at the north of the island. "The unique convection currents around this area will make it hard for anything to fly through anywhere else at this time. The winds will be too strong for anyone to fly past, even for me. Azuma managed to arrive early because he came through the sea, which is largely unaffected by the convection currents. If Grimoire Heart wants to come to Tenrou Island by air, and we know they **_are_** coming by air, it will have to be from the north side. We still have three hours to prepare until the winds change in their favour and allow them to fly here. If it is an airship, they will arrive here very quickly after the convection currents change."

"We can set up an ambush. If they are coming by an airship, the logical thing to do will be to destroy it with all of their members on board before they can disembark. It will be easier for us to win our battle. We would need to select our battlefield carefully to achieve maximum effect."

"You have a plan?" Makarov asked Mystogan, who gave a nod.

"Mira, me, and El will play the supporting role. My magic and El's are naturally suited for this job, and Mira is not in her peak condition so that is the best position for her to be in. It is the most logical setup to take. If we don't want to let Grimoire Heart take a single step on our island, then we have to assume that our battleground would be on the sea surrounding Tenrou Island or in the air. I don't know what the Seven Kin of Purgatory can do since I failed to get that bit of information, but I don't believe every single one of Grimoire Heart's mages is well-equipped to fight in an aerial battle or on the sea. However, we can. Jellal and Laxus can fly, and so can Erza if she equips the right armour. Master's Titan magic will make this a non-issue since he can simply enlarge himself. I can use Air Magic with my staves. The only problem we have is Gildarts inability to fly."

"I can make footholds for him with my barriers." I added. "As long as he doesn't accidentally destroy them."

"Eh, I will try my best not to destroy anything on our side."

"I have a plan in mind on how we can fire our opening salvo." Mystogan continued. "If you guys are agreeable."

"Let's hear it."

* * *

"Damn it!"

Nobody stopped Natsu when he obliterated another set of tables in the guild hall. They are all feeling the same emotions as he did. Mystogan's Sleep Magic had worn off the moment Mest teleported them back here into the guild.

"You-!"

Gray growled as he lifted Mest up by the shirt. The air around him is freezing due to the outburst of his rage.

"G-Gray-san! Let Mest-san down!"

"Don't stop me, Wendy."

"I don't know what exactly happened, but I can make an educated guess that Master and the S Class mages sent you back for a reason." Carla reasoned. She was about to head out with Pantherlily to find Wendy because her visions had been giving her a very uneasy feeling. The relief she felt when she saw Wendy teleporting into the guild hall with every single S Class candidate and their partners was a reassuring sight.

What made her more uneasy is that all of a sudden, she cannot see her visions clearly anymore. Something had changed, and now she doesn't know whether what her Precognition showed her held true anymore.

" ** _Grimoire Heart_** is after **_Zeref_** on Tenrou Island!" Levy shouted out. "I know they are S Class mages and Gildarts and Master are with them, but it is Grimoire Heart we are talking about! They have only seven people on their side! And we are not even talking about how dangerous Zeref is!"

"I don't know what is going on, but whatever it is, it sounds serious." Macao, who happened to be in the guild together with a few others, finally spoke up as he walked closer to the group to find out what the commotion is about.

"Of course it's serious!" Lucy exclaimed. "Grimoire Heart is invading Tenrou Island as we speak!"

"What the- What are we waiting for then?!" Max sputtered as he stood up agitatedly and slammed his hands on the table he was leaning on. "Let's go!"

"It will take us a long time to reach Tenrou from here!" Cana said in frustration. Just when she was about to give it her all for her exam, so that she can finally have the courage to tell her father that she is his daughter, **_this_** have to happen!

"Happy should be able to bring me there quick enough at full speed!" Natsu cried out, his will to fight already ignited a long time ago. "Come on, Happy, let's go!"

"You will not take a step out of here."

Freed's runic barriers appeared and trapped every occupant in the guild building within, his Eye Magic pulsating with power.

"Freed!"

"This is Elden-sama's wish, and I will help him to uphold it." Freed said calmly as Bickslow and Evergreen stood beside him. "The Thunder God Tribe will make sure that Elden-sama's wish is adhered to."

"You want me to give you another beatdown, seaweed head?" Natsu growled out as he lit his body on fire. "I'm getting out of here, one way or another. You are not stopping me."

Freed's eyes narrowed.

"I won't lose to you, Natsu."

"El had a point." Elfman, who had been mostly silent all this while, spoke up. "Lisanna and I worked with him the longest, together with the Thunder God Tribe. We know the way he thinks. El doesn't do things without a very good reason. If he agreed to send us back, then he was genuinely afraid of what might happen if we stayed behind. I don't like this situation one single bit, not when El and Nee-san are out there while we are stuck here, but what can we realistically do? The whole lot of us couldn't even stand up against El's power in the second stage of the exams. If Grimoire Heart is an opponent that got even El afraid, what can we do if we stayed there? The difference in power between us and El alone is so big, and every S Class mage of our guild are around his power level. He's right to say that we don't deserve the title of S Class, at least not now. We don't have the same strength as they do."

"We defeated Oracion Seis!"

"But that was with the help of the Light Alliance." Lisanna argued.

"Alright, I know I'm probably the most hated person here, but remember what the Aegis said?" Gajeel broke the argument as he walked up to stand in the middle of the agitated group. "That Salamander don't deserve the title because you don't even know what you want to do with the title? I have no idea how your S Class mages are really selected, but back at Phantom Lord, there's always a test within a test. The reason why the Aegis didn't pass any of you is probably because none of you pass the hidden test."

"Hidden test?"

"Back at Phantom, what Jose prized was strength, the ability to keep on fighting no matter what happened. If you display the capability to do so and you have the required minimum strength of S Class, then you are promoted to S Class. At least, that was how Jose did things. I don't know what Makarov prized in Fairy Tail, so I don't know for sure what he is testing you guys on." Gajeel shrugged as he revealed this tidbit of information about his previous guild. "Remember what the Aegis said before he went crazy on us? ' _Show me that you guys know what it truly means to be S Class_ '. Those were his exact words. He wasn't expecting for us to defeat him, he wants you guys to show him something, something that proves that you guys are qualified to claim the title of S Class mages. I thought that was obvious."

"And you are telling us that **_now_**?" Levy said in disbelief.

"I thought that was obvious, shrimp. Besides, that was _your_ exam, not mine. It's something you are supposed to realise yourself."

"Come to think of it, El did mention that he and Laxus never did managed to defeat Gildarts in their S Class trials, and yet they were promoted anyway." Lisanna said in deep thought as she tried to recall as much as possible whatever could be possible clues to help them out now.

Throughout it all, Cana remained silent as she sat in a quiet corner. All she wanted is to become S Class to be recognised by her father. She knows her father is a capable mage, but going up against an entire guild filled with S Class dark mages, even if he has help from their fellow S Class mages, scares her. _And **Zeref** is now involved in this entire debacle_. She doesn't want to lose her father even before she had the chance to tell him that she is his daughter.

Why wasn't she strong enough? If she was strong enough, she could be right there on Tenrou Island, fighting side by side with her father. If she was strong enough, she could do something about this, she could help her guild. Why? What makes her different from the current S Class mages? She knows she has the strength to be S Class in raw magical power alone. Sure, her magic is not as destructive like Erza's or Mira's, but she is strong in her own right!

So why? Why had she failed four times before this? Just what is she missing?

 _"You don't even know what you want to do after you got the S Class title and yet you are here? Don't make me laugh."_

What she wants to do with the S Class title after she got it? All she wanted is to have her father acknowledge her once she made S Class, but after that?

She honestly has no clue.

 _"You, you, you, and you. I seriously thought that you guys are better than this. As of now, none of you are ready to be S Class. None of you deserve this title."_

 _"And **what** gives **you** the right to say that. We all have our reasons to be S Class just like you did."_

 _"Yeah, but you think this fancy title is **just for show**?"_

Cana winced when she recalled the words Elden had spoken back at Tenrou. She's an idiot. Of course, there have to be a significance attached to the S Class title. No wonder he was so harsh on them, none of them realised this significance. Elden was probably pissed.

 _"Show me that you guys know what it truly means to be S Class."_

But show what?

 _"We are **S Class mages**. Unlike you twerps, who haven't yet realised the significance of this title. Because of that, none of you are ready for this."_

Maybe her father's right. She's not ready for this. She's not ready for S Class and she is not S Class material. How selfish can she be? Each of their S Class mages and candidates were ready to put their life on the line to defend Tenrou Island from Grimoire Heart, and yet the first thought that came to her mind was that the exam was suspended and how it would affect her personal plans.

Looking back, she should be ashamed of herself.

 _"This, Natsu, is the reason why we are staying behind and not you. We are simply better suited for this job. Until the day comes when you S Class candidates realise what it really means to be S Class, we S Class mages will be handling something of this magnitude. Winning the fight isn't the be all, end all, to every challenge you face. You people need to learn how to see the larger picture at hand."_

Larger picture at hand? What is the larger picture at hand? What is it that the S Class mages see that they don't?

"I DON'T CARE! LET US OUT OF HERE, FREED! OR I WILL BURN YOU DOWN!"

"Flame Brain is right for once. Let us through."

"You want to taste defeat so badly, Gray?" Bickslow taunted as his dolls floated menacingly beside him.

"As a man, I can understand what you two are feeling, but think through it logically for once. By the time we reached Tenrou, the fight would have already been over." Elfman said as he tried to stop a fight between comrades from happening.

"Listen to reason for once, Salamander. We were sent back for a reason. Makarov and the S Class mages obviously don't want us to be out there. If you go back now, then they would have just wasted their efforts."

"I don't want to hear that from **_you_** , bolt for brains!"

Why didn't Master Makarov and the S Class mages want them to be out there?

 _Why_?

"Master and the rest are out there protecting the grave of our First Master! They need the help!"

Is protecting the grave of someone already dead that important? The living is more important, right? Shouldn't they focus on-

 _Them_.

Of course, why didn't she realised it?! The S Class mages are trying to protect _them_ by pulling them out of harm's way. By getting them out of the Tenrou Island, which will become a battlefield soon. Master Makarov and the S Class mages are protecting Master Mavis's grave, which is not a lie, but the thing that they are truly trying to protect is the rest of the guild. If Grimoire Heart is after their guild now, who is to say that they wouldn't come after them in the future? The fact that Grimoire Heart knows the secret to their Great Tenrou Tree is already a huge cause for concern. Even if they all leave Tenrou Island through Mest's and Mystogan's powers, it is not the true solution to their problems. The Magic Council is too inept to do something about the Balam Alliance, Fairy Tail cannot rely on them. In fact, the current Magic Council is looking forward to disbanding them, they wouldn't be of any help. At the very most, Fairy Tail can only rely on their allies from the Light Alliance and a few other light guilds, but that's it. The harsh truth is that right now, Fairy Tail is largely on their own in this crisis.

Maybe it was because of their guild's performance in taking down Oracion Seis, but Fairy Tail is definitely now on Grimoire Heart's hitlist. Someone has to stop Grimoire Heart now, for the sake of their guild. Someone has to eliminate this threat before they can cause definite harm to Fairy Tail, but at the same time, the S Class mages cannot risk a full offensive in case they fail. This is **_Grimoire Heart_** they are talking about, a guild so strong that they control a third of the underworld in Fiore. Oracion Seis was also a guild with the same strength as Grimoire Heart and yet even the Light Alliance barely pulled through.

To protect them and the guild's future, that's what their guild master and S Class mages are trying to do. It is not fully about the confidence their S Class mages have in the power they wield to stop Grimoire Heart. The S Class mages are leaving the guild's future in their hands in case they never return. To them, they are the guild's future, something that is worth them risking their lives for.

Is that what it means to be an S Class mage? Why couldn't she realise this sooner?

Her father is right. They don't deserve to be S Class.

"Don't make me take down your barriers, Freed. Let us out of here. Surely we can do _something_ to help them!"

"You can try, Levy, but none of you are leaving."

" **ENOUGH**!"

Everyone turned to Cana, who had shouted at them to stop.

"I… I feel the same way as you guys do, trust me." Cana gritted out as she clenched her fists, her head hung low as she stood up. "I don't like the fact that our S Class mages threw us back here while they are out there facing one of the most dangerous dark guilds in existence by themselves, but the fact is, they are **_right_**. Right now, we would just be a liability to them. El is a big jerk, but he was right, the S Class title isn't given out just for show."

"Come on, Cana! Now is not the time to-"

"I… I don't care about being S Class anymore." Cana continued and she can feel tears starting to leak out from her eyes despite how she tried to hold it in, but she doesn't care. "I know our S Class mages are trying to protect us the best way they know how, but I don't like the idea of us sitting on the bench and doing nothing either. In that case, we can instead try and help our S Class mages in whatever way we can from here. But Elfman is also right, we are too far away to do anything and the fight would have already ended by the time we got back to Tenrou. Yet, I don't want to stand here and do **_nothing_** while our nakama are out there risking their lives for the sake of the guild. We are Fairy Tail mages. We **never** give up."

Cana looked up with determination.

"In that case, we leave the fighting of Grimoire Heart's main fighting force to our S Class mages. We need to trust them that they can do it. We will do something else on our end to help them. Grimoire Heart controls one third of the dark guilds in Fiore. Safe to say, Grimoire Heart will call upon most of them to make up their army to invade Tenrou Island. We are known as the strongest Light Guild in Fiore, there's no way Grimoire Heart is going to invade our holy island without backup. I'm almost certain Grimoire Heart will call upon the dark guilds under their control to increase their chances for success."

"And if we can take out their backup even before they reached Tenrou…" Levy's eyes widened in realisation.

"It will make things easier for Gramps and our S Class mages." Gray completed.

"But won't they be on their way already? On their airship thing?"

"If we are fast enough, they won't be." Wendy quickly added her opinion. "I am the Sky Dragon Slayer, so I am extremely sensitive to the changes in air currents. When we were travelling to Tenrou Island on the ship, I realised that the convection currents surrounding the area of Tenrou is very special and is always changing, but they have a set pattern that changes very accurately at every hour. If my guess is correct, travelling through the air will be very dangerous right now because it is where the winds are at the strongest. It will be suicide to try and fight against the winds at this point in time, even if they have the protection of an airship. Can someone pass me a map?"

Reedus quickly handed Wendy a map, and the Sky Dragon Slayer quickly went on with her explanation now that she has the attention from the entire guild.

"See this area near Hargeon? From what I could sense earlier, this is the only convenient area where an airship could possibly wait out for the convection currents to change so that they can finally proceed. And judging from what I can remember about the changes in convection currents in that area, right now, we have about three hours before the convection currents changes to Grimore Heart's favour. This is all the time we have to travel to Hargeon and take out the dark guilds that Grimoire Heart controls before they board Grimoire Heart's airship and head to Tenrou."

"We are making a lot of assumptions here." Juvia warned. "What if they already boarded the airship and are simply waiting for the convection currents to change? We would be up against the full might of Grimoire Heart then, the one thing our S Class mages are trying to protect us against."

"It will be a risk that we would have to take." Cana said as she scrutinised the map. "What are the known dark guilds that are under Grimoire Heart's control anyway?"

"There is a list drawn up by Mira somewhere right before Team Natsu went on the quest to subjugate Oracion Seis, I will go dig it out." Wakaba volunteered as he immediately headed for the guild's archives.

"If we assume that this is where Grimoire Heart's airship will be waiting, then there are only three routes that the other dark guilds under their control can possibly use to get there." Evergreen pointed out on the map as her finger traced out the three routes that she had suggested.

"We cannot send everyone out there." Freed said as he finally relented, knowing that once his comrades made up their mind, nothing can stop them. The fact that he could not be of any help on Tenrou bugs him too, but to him, the orders from Laxus and Elden always took priority. However, it would be better and easier on his heart if they could make their battles easier if they have the capability to do so. If taking down the dark guilds that made up part of the fighting strength of Grimoire Heart can help their S Class mages, then that is what they will do.

"Some of us have to stay behind and defend the guild if Grimoire Heart really comes knocking on our doors like what Master feared."

"So, who's staying and who's going?"

"I say let's just all go and burn them to a crisp! A building can be rebuilt, so what if they destroy the guild building? If we just-"

"You know, if you really want to be S Class, then you would need to learn how to think through things a little better. Having confidence in your abilities is good, but you cannot just charge in head-on into battle without a plan every single time."

That unfamiliar voice got everyone on alert immediately.

"Up there!"

True to Wendy's words, a petite woman with long wavy yellow-blond hair is smiling down at them. Her frilly dress is spotless despite the fact that she is sitting on top of a dusty wooden beam near the ceiling, swinging her bare feet in a childish manner.

"Who are you?"

"Grimoire Heart? They are already here?"

"Iron Dragon-"

"WAIT WAIT WAIT!" The petite girl waved her arms frantically as she hopped off the beam and floated down to the ground. "I am a Fairy Tail mage too!"

"If you want to lie, you ought to try harder, girly." Gajeel growled, wary of someone who actually managed to sneak past the senses of everyone in the guild building.

"I-I'm not lying!"

"Then where's your guild mark?" Cana questioned, her cards already out and ready to be unleashed. "I had been here for a long time and yet I had never seen you before."

"I-I-I-"

"Let's go, Gray!"

"I'm on it! Ice-Make: Lance!"

"Fire Dragon's Claw!"

"I'm not an enemy!" The girl cried out in comical tears as she dodged Natsu's and Gray's attacks. "I'm the First Master of Fairy Tail! Mavis Vermillion!"

"…What?" Lucy's words summarised the collective thoughts of everyone in the guild as they stared at the small petite girl.

"G-G- ** _Ghost_**?!" Natsu and Gray visibly freaked out as they hugged each other while shivering in fright, their previous hostility towards the girl forgotten temporarily. Their sentiments were shared with some of the other superstitious guild members as well.

"Well…" Said ghost(?) tilted her head as she put a finger to her chin in thought. "I guess… I _could_ be considered as one? Technically speaking?"

" ** _EEEEEEKKK_**!"

"Shut up!" Lucy slammed her fists onto Gray's and Natsu's heads in a very Erza-like fashion. "There's no such thing as ghosts!"

"Lucy." Bickslow said slowly and in a very cautious manner that is very unlike the Seith mage. "She is. My eyes don't lie. This girl doesn't have a body and I don't think this is a thought projection."

"…"

" **AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH**!"

"Wait wait wait! I'm a friendly ghost! A friendly ghost! I'm your First Master! Wait! Don't run away! Don't attack me! I'm a **_friendly_** ghost! A FRIENDLY GHOST! WHY WON'T YOU GUYS BELIEVE ME?!"

* * *

"So, you hitched a ride with us back to Magnolia with Mest's Direct Line."

"Yup! It was boring being all by myself back on Tenrou!"

"You are a ghost."

"If you want to be technical…"

"A **_ghost_**."

" _Mou_ ~ That's not the point here! The point is I'm here to help!"

"Master Mavis is right. We need to think of a way to help Master and our S Class mages." Cana sighed as she rubbed her forehead to ease the migraine she is experiencing. It was absolute mayhem when everyone freaked out at the idea that a **_ghost_** was with them all this while, until Master Mavis proved her claim as a Fairy Tail mage when she showed them that she could cast Fairy Law.

At least this 'ghost' is a friendly ghost, and one that is protective of Fairy Tail. They can work with this.

"It's reassuring to have you with us, Master Mavis." Levy said with a smile. "You were known as the Fairy Tactician after all."

"Yup!" The childish mage who is also the founder of the guild clapped her hands happily. "Grimoire Heart won't even know what hit them!"

"Alright! Now I'm all fired up! What's the plan?"

"We are going to leave the main fighting to our S Class mages back on Tenrou."

"Wha…?"

"They are **_S Class mages_**. They can handle themselves." Master Mavis chided as she waved a disapproving finger at Natsu. "I was watching when you S Class candidates got toyed around during the second stage of the exams. Didn't you hear what your Barrier Mage said to you? The S Class title is not given out for show. You can be the strongest in the guild but if you don't understand the weight behind that title, then you are not worthy of that title. There is more to being an S Class mage than to be magically powerful, it was why me, Precht, and Makarov designed the S Class trials the way we did. Anyway, only a few of you right now **_might_** be capable of going toe to toe with S Class dark mages. Makarov was right to send you guys back here, none of you are ready for a direct confrontation with them. You would be lucky to be able to get back unscathed, even with the protection from the Great Tenrou Tree."

"Then what are we going to do?" Lisanna asked.

"Like what you guys suggested. We are going to make the fight easier for our S Class mages. You guys had already analysed the situation quite accurately, leave the planning to me." Mavis said with a sly smirk slowly forming on her face. "But I would first need a quick rundown on each and everyone's capabilities here before I start formulating a plan. Are you guys with me on this?"

Mavis's grin was shared by everyone in the guild as the same thought ran through their minds.

They will make Grimoire Heart regret for trying to even think about messing with Fairy Tail.

 _Grimoire Heart is going **down**._

* * *

 **AN: So yeah, I'm back. For now. I'm not dead and school had not successfully killed me off yet. We shall see. *cross fingers***

 **I received a number of PMs asking me to update TAOFT together with some of my other stories since the last time I updated this story. It warms my heart that you guys like what I'm writing and that my works have garnered positive attention (mostly), but writing had always been just a hobby to me. And you can only indulge in a hobby only when you have the free time. Sadly, reality's a bitch, and the amount of my free time I have is getting steadily lesser as the days goes by. The next time I would have the time to update TAOFT would probably take a long while. The only reason why I could update TAOFT is because right now I am having my recess break, and I have work to complete in the meantime so I guess any more updates after this will probably come very much later. Probably months. I will see if there is anything I can do about that. The only thing I can assure you is that unless I explicitly said that this story has been discontinued, then you can assume that TAOFT is still alive. I'm sorry, but the only thing I can ask from you now is to be patient. I do have a life to live and there are things that requires my attention irl. Like I had said earlier, reality's a bitch, which is a reason why I turned to FF in the first place. Reading and writing had always been a good form of escape for me.**

 **Anyway, I don't know if what I did to the Tenrou arc is the right direction to take, since this is the arc I am absolutely sure is the first real total deviation from canon that I have always planned to do. Given what I wrote about Elden, his personalities and his motivations, and as someone who wants to protect his friends at all costs while being realistic about it, I think this is what someone like him would do when faced with the Tenrou arc problem and given what is within his influence and power to change things as an S Class mage. Of course, his plans would never go according to plan because he is in _Fairy Tail_. Since when had anything gone according to plan when it comes to Fairy Tail? **

**I also introduced Mavis early on into the story because no matter how I thought about it, if she has the ability to interact with her guild all along, then it doesn't make sense for her to stand by the side, do nothing and watch as her guild gets involved in a bloody battle with Grimoire Heart, especially now that Fairy Tail had caught up on their plans earlier than what had happened in canon, thanks to Mystogan. If you guys are complaining why Elden didn't think of calling for Mavis's help, I purposely made it this way because it aligns with his character. If I have to psycho-analyse Elden given how I had created him, the one thing he does not want anyone to find out is his reincarnated status. He is constantly afraid of having his secret found out and I made sure to make references to that throughout the story, which explains why he did certain things in a certain manner throughout the story. Because of this fear he have, he is mostly a lone wolf other than a select few which he views as his close friends. He is used to working alone and this is where his bad habits backfired on him. Also, no one is perfect, including Elden. This story is not, and never will be, a godlike mc, even if Elden will grow to be a strong mage. The only thing special about him is his foreknowledge, which will be close to useless after the Tenrou arc. I want him to have flaws, believable and realistic flaws, because no one is perfect. Elden does have his flaws, and in this case, he didn't think of asking for help from anyone else. He had also wrongly assumed that his friends would sit by the side quietly the moment he transported them away with Mest's and Mystogan's magic. Thankfully, Mavis is here to save the day.**

 **On a side note, writing about Mavis is tougher than it looks, given that she is the equivalent of Shikamaru in Fairy Tail. You would see what I mean in the next chapter.**

 **Not sure if I screwed the Tenrou arc up, but I stand by what I decided upon because this is what I think should happen realistically if the children friendly manga is now reality and not children friendly at all. I totally hate rehash from canon anyway, so I just decided to screw canon, and simply mess canon up into something unrecognisable.**

 **In any case, hope you guys enjoy this chapter.**


	23. Chapter 23- Fairy Tactician

"Azuma still has not replied, Master Hades."

"He's probably busy with taking down the Great Tenrou Tree. Let him be. What I want to know is **_why_** at least 40% of our forces are still not here. We have to leave soon."

Ultear frowned. Master Hades is right. Why haven't the various dark guilds under their command not reported to their airship yet? They should have been here at least an hour ago.

"Never mind. Cannon fodder would not be of much use against Makarov's soldiers anyway. If they haven't arrived by the designated time, we will leave without them. However, we would need to punish them appropriately after our trip to Tenrou Island."

"Yes, Master Hades. But since we still have some time left, do you want me to send someone out to check their whereabouts?"

"Might as well." Hades decided after a brief pause of silence. "Send Meredy out. She's efficient."

"As you command, Master Hades."

* * *

"You are late."

"W-We are sorry, Meredy-sama!" A nameless grunt from a dark guild under their control, someone that Meredy could not bother to remember his name, squealed out in fear as her blades pointed at his neck. Behind the grunt, the rest of his lackies are also kneeling down in fear of her. "There were Rune Knights patrolling the area and we had no choice but to make a detour!"

Meredy's eyes narrowed a little. Something just seems off, but she cannot place a finger on what is wrong. Maybe she is having the jitters at this large-scale invasion their guild is planning? That has to be it.

Meredy turned around wordlessly and began to make her way back to her guild's airship, leaving the grunts behind. This was a waste of time.

"Meredy-sama! Wait- Ah!"

"Don't touch me." Meredy growled out as she kicked the grunt away when he stood up to chase after her but tripped and fell, accidentally holding onto her arm as a result to stabilise his footing.

If it wasn't for the need to maintain her cover for Ultear's sake, she would have killed this grunt a long time ago. She's not exactly in a good mood right now, having to run all the way here to check on why almost half of the dark guilds under their rule were late. The airship will be leaving soon and she has to get back before it took off. She needs to be by Ultear's side.

Thus, when she hastened her pace and left the grunt behind, she failed to notice the small unnatural smile on the grunt's face, or the fact that the rest of the grunts silently vanished in a shimmer of light, an obvious use of Illusion Magic.

 _Mission accomplished._

* * *

"Gemini!"

"Yukino! We got the information! Piri-Piri!"

"Good job, Yuki-chan!" Natsu said excitedly. They are a step closer to completing their plan!

"Master Mavis's plan worked!"

"How the hell did you predict every single detail so accurately?" Gajeel asked with a bewildered look on his face as he looked towards the First Master of Fairy Tail. Mavis's ability to use Illusion Magic in such great detail had amazed them too. The various grunts she created looked extremely lifelike and would have fooled even him.

"People called me the Fairy Tactician for a reason, Gajeel."

Right behind the small group of Fairy Tail mages, a mountain of bodies were unceremoniously stacked into a pile. Most of them were already unconscious. Some of them are still groaning in pain but were quickly silenced by the rest of the mages from Fairy Tail. These are a significant portion of the dark guilds that are currently under the control of Grimoire Heart. They didn't get all of them, purposely letting some of them walk past them and towards Grimoire Heart's airship since the next stage of their plan requires some of these dark guilds to board the airship. They would have to let some of them go.

The Fairy Tail mages were lucky that Mest still had enough in him to teleport a sizable group of them to Hargeon. However, this is a one-way trip. Mest had succumbed to magic exhaustion the moment they arrived here. His magic, while versatile, is not meant to be excessively used in such a way in such a short period of time. Master Mavis could only take who she needs with her on their quest to help their S Class mages.

 _'This is Bisca. We spotted the airship. Our next orders?'_

 _'This is Warren. Roger that, wait for further instructions.'_ Warren, who is beside the main group of Fairy Tail mages, sent out a mental reply to Bisca and Alzack, their guild's best scouts.

"Gemini, what have you found out?" Yukino asked immediately. Her El-niichan and Mira-nee will be going against Grimoire Heart soon. She will help them in any way she can.

She is glad that her older sister, Sorano, had gave Gemini and Aeries to her. With this, she can help to protect the guild and her older siblings. She may be young, but she can still help.

"This is bad." Mavis muttered in horror the moment Gemini revealed everything Meredy knew, the dark mage whose knowledge that they had stolen with Gemini's Copy Magic. "Precht… why?"

"We are going up against our **_Second Master_**?"

"No wonder Grimoire Heart knew our secrets."

"Who cares?! Anyone who dares harm our nakama is our enemy!"

"At least we know that they are not truly united. We also now know their true strength and what the Seven Kin can individually do. That is a good start." Freed reasoned.

"True."

"We need to change our plans accordingly." Mavis said without hesitation. "Precht is a formidable opponent to go against, and this Devil's's Heart… It needs to be destroyed if we want to stop Precht in his mad quest for power."

"But Master Makarov and our S Class mages will have their hands tied while they are fighting the main force of Grimoire Heart. They will need an extra hand to help destroy the Devil's's Heart."

Mavis took a breath to calm herself down. She has no idea why Precht ended up like this, but Natsu is right. Anyone who dares harm a member of their guild is their enemy. Right now is not the time to be sentimental.

She is the First Master of Fairy Tail. She founded this guild so that mages who need a home will have a family and home to call their own, so that they can experience the same never-ending adventure that she had dreamed of.

She will not allow anyone to harm her family, even if that person used to be her friend and family.

"Let's proceed to the second stage of our plan."

As the First Master of Fairy Tail, she will do whatever it takes to protect her guild.

* * *

"Yo, you guys missed me?"

"Loke?" Words came out of my mouth out of pure reflex as the Celestial Spirit walked up to us without a care in the world. I know Loke has the ability to freely move between the Human World and the Celestial Spirit World with his own strength since he is a very strong spirit, but to move himself to Tenrou Island, somewhere so far away from Yukino, her contracted summoner?

It seems that I had severely underestimated the Lion Spirit my little sister contracted with.

"Master Makarov." The Celestial Spirit greeted Master Makarov respectfully before handing him a lacrima orb, one which is used for long-range communication. "Someone wishes to speak with you."

The rest of us S Class mages looked at each other. We had just finished our preparations for the upcoming battle, but we have no clue what is going on right now. My mind is working overtime, trying to predict just what had changed thanks to my meddling.

Hopefully, the lovable idiots back home didn't just go and do something totally stupid.

* * *

"Heh. This is right up our alley." Bickslow muttered as he and Lisanna finally managed to find a quiet corner for themselves, out of sight of anyone else. His Figure Eyes is useful for spotting any traps or potential eavesdropper. He is sure that no hostiles are around them now.

"Just keep quiet." Cana whispered, not wanting their cover to be blown.

With a quick application of Lisanna's usage of Transformation Magic to disguise themselves, the three of them had sneaked up onboard Grimoire Heart's airship together with a bunch of minor dark guilds that is under the command of Grimoire Heart. These are the few dark guilds that their friends had secretly decided against taking down since this will help to let the three of them blend in and sneaked into Grimoire Heart undetected. According to Master Mavis, a flaw in the method that the Balam Alliance had took to control their subsidiary guilds is that they are not united in the true sense, often not knowing intimately who belongs to which dark guild. Most of the dark mages would not know which other members made up their ally guilds. It was what allowed the both of them to sneak onboard the airship easily.

The three of them were with Bisca and Alzack before they separated. Together with Happy, Pantherlily, and Carla, the eight of them made up the scouting and infiltration team that Master Mavis had organised. Right now, all they have to do is to not draw attention to themselves, and wait until the right time to strike.

Bickslow had to transfer his souls from his usual dolls into something more discrete and portable, and he had done so by transferring them into five small wooden pins he always brought around for such an occasion. The mission they were given by Master Mavis is arguably the most dangerous, but also the most important. It is because of this that Master Mavis had told the three of them to bring along the exceeds with them, so that they can escape immediately if their cover was blown. The three exceeds are now hiding quietly in the backpacks that they each brought along up the airship. No one would be expecting for people to be smuggling cats onboard an airship and no one here could be bothered to do a bag check anyway.

Right now, all they have to do is to wait and have faith in Master Mavis's plan, and also in their fellow nakama.

* * *

"So that's Tenrou Island." Ultear said out loud as the holy island of Fairy Tail came into view. It won't be long before they touch down and complete their objective.

It's time to acquire Zeref for the sake of their goals. If it wasn't for the fact that the island cannot be entered or found without the current guild master of Fairy Tail undoing the protective magical barriers surrounding it, no one can find or land on the island. Azuma only got in because part of the protection surrounding the island that hides the island from view had already been undone by Makarov for Fairy Tail's S Class promotion trial. That was the only opening Azuma needed to infiltrate the island.

"Tonight demons and fairies will frolic." Hades spoke out as their airship got nearer and nearer to Tenrou Island. "Eat and be proud, or be eaten and scatter."

"Wait, what is that?"

Zancrow's question got everyone following his outstretched finger, and the remainder of the Seven Kin of Purgatory can only do their best to not be cowed at the sight of an angry giant blocking their way.

" **This is your last warning**. **DISAPPEAR**."

"Makarov." Hades chuckled at the sight. How long has it been since he last saw the brat going at his full strength?

" **Not going to stop? We won't let you go any further**."

"Master Hades! Incoming object coming right from above!" One of the grunts piloting the airship cried out. "It's too fast! We cannot avoid it!"

"Engines at full power! Avoid it!"

Grimoire Heart knew that their pilots failed to do so when a speeding meteor collided into their airship, taking out its engines immediately. The airship spiralled out of control as everyone tried to hold onto something in a desperate attempt to not tumble around.

"We are losing altitude!"

"Jellal…" Ultear gritted out in frustration. She recognised that bright flash of yellow anywhere.

"Ultear!" Hades barked out and Ultear immediately knew what to do.

"Arc of Time, Restore."

The broken airship began to repair itself into the state before it was destroyed. Or at least, that was what is supposed to happen.

"Ultear! What are you doing?! Repair the ship!"

"I can't!" Ultear shouted out in a panic as tried again and again in using her Arc of Time. Her magic had responded, but somehow the effects of her magic just never took place. Her magic had **_never_** failed before. So **WHY**?! Why isn't it working?! Is there something cancelling out her magic?!

"Tch." Hades clicked his tongue in annoyance as he stood up from his seat. One of Makarov's brats must have done something. Makarov is not capable of stopping the Arc of Time, that much he knew. But that's ok. As long as his Devil's Heart isn't destroyed, then everything is fine.

"Caprico, take everyone on board the island. Make sure to avoid Jellal. I'll take care of Makarov."

"Understood."

With a single clap of his hand, Caprico stored everyone who is supposed to be part of the force in invading Tenrou Island in numerous bubbles, leaving those behind who are supposed to pilot the falling airship and making sure it lands safely and those who are supposed to guard the airship in their absence.

Putting on his jetpack, Caprico flew out of the airship, making sure to stay out of Jellal's sight like what Hades had ordered.

"Grand Chariot."

Caprico clicked his tongue in annoyance and increased the speed of his flight. Of course it wouldn't be that easy.

Seven powerful blasts of light fell from the sky as Caprico quickly swerved out of the way. Caprico flew as fast as he can the moment he spotted the ex-member of the Ten Wizard Saints chasing after him at full speed.

"Gotcha. Chibaku Tensei!"

The first thing Caprico felt was severe pain when he collided into an invisible wall. The next thing he knew, he was being attacked on all sides by invisible objects and slowly getting trapped in an invisible prison, getting crushed by all sides.

It must be Fairy Tail's S Class mage, Elden Tyrell. Only he is known to be able to create invisible attacks unseen by the naked eye from what little they know. He needs to quickly release his entire guild before they are trapped together with him, even if this isn't the best place to do so.

They are still too far away from the island for his liking. If he releases his guild now, they will be dropping into the sea. Then again, he isn't really left with a choice with how he is slowly getting crushed by all sides.

Reluctantly, Caprico took the best course of action he can take right now.

"What the hell, Caprico?!"

"I don't have a choice, okay?" Caprico replied to Zancrow's grumbling. "Rusty!"

"Sacred Guardian Beast: Belcusas the Thunderclap!" Rustyrose cried out as he summoned a powerful creature that is born from his imagination. In an incredible display of strength, the creature destroyed the invisible prison holding them. However, right now, their suspected assailant, the Aegis of Fairy Tail, still cannot be found.

"Two Layered Magic Circle: Unruly Explosion"

"I'm eating this!" Zancrow said as he rushed off to devour the flames in an effort to protect their forces from further harm while they are still free falling towards the sea. He opened his mouth, only to quickly shut it and get out of the way when a scarlet-haired mage slashed at him with her swords, fury clear in her eyes.

Damn it, _Erza Scarlet_. It's like the entire Fairy Tail guild knew they are coming! What is Azuma doing?! Why isn't the Great Tenrou Tree down yet?!

"Ultear! Do something! We cannot fight effectively on the sea!"

"Ice-Make: Floor!"

In a desperate attempt to save themselves and conserve the strength of their fighting force, Ultear was forced to use the one power that she really does not want to tap into. She seethed; these fairies are going to wish that they have never been born for forcing her to use this power, the power she inherited from her mother.

"Enjoy your swim. Shinra Tensei."

Another invisible blast of power pushed everyone down further into the sea, breaking the floor of ice Ultear had created. Elden Tyrell's ability to stay invisible and launch sneak attacks from everywhere is proving to be a huge problem. They will have to take him out immediately.

Rustyrose's quick thinking to create a huge sea monster got everyone out from underwater, only to find the Ace of Fairy Tail dropping down on them from above.

"CRUSH!"

"Golden Shield!"

Rustyrose's conjured shield held up against the heavy blow from Gildarts, even if the user of the Arc of Embodiment almost fell onto his knees from the impact. Meredy and Kain immediately went to help out as they jumped over the shield to attack Gildarts.

"Look out!"

Meredy was sent careening into the air when a furious Erza Scarlet slashed at her with a flurry of blades. Meredy had managed to defend herself with her own swords, but the impact of the blow had knocked her backwards and far away from them. Kain was punted back into the sea by a she-demon. Zancrow was about to burn Mirajane with his flames, but a translucent barrier got in his way.

"Your attention should be on **_me_** , brat."

As soon as he said that, Gildarts destroyed Rustyrose's shield with a simple clench of his fist.

"We need to split up!" Rustyrose said as he summoned the Tower of Dingir to immobilise Gildarts, even if it is just a temporary measure. "We will be annihilated by him at this rate! Ultear, bring everyone to the island with your ice! Just go! We will hold them here!"

"Your little army of riff-raffs had been already taken care of." Gildarts said as he casually destroyed the Tower of Dingir with a simple blast of his magic, much to Rustyrose's disbelief. Gildarts dropped down and landed on something invisible in mid-air, an invisible platform for him to move about in the air. Rustyrose could feel his face and palms sweating in fear, the amount of magical pressure Gildarts is exuding is crazy.

"Take a look behind you."

True to Gildarts's words, the entire invading army that their guild had organised and brought along with them are now asleep as they float about on the surface of the sea. The only people left are them, the Seven Kin of Purgatory. _Since when_?! Since when had someone put their **_entire_** invading force to sleep?!

"You people made a mistake." Gildarts growled out as he increased the amount of magic he is giving out, almost dropping Rustyrose to his knees from the mere magical pressure alone. How can someone that is not Master Hades be so crazily strong?!

"I'm giving you till the count of three to run. Don't blame me for being merciless after that. I'm not good at holding back."

Rustyrose ignored Gildarts's words as he quickly took in his surroundings.

" **Three**."

From what Rustyrose can see, Ultear is now busy fighting against Jellal from where she is standing on a platform of ice that is floating on the sea. Meredy is with Ultear as well as she defends Ultear from Erza, who somehow has the capability to fly with the winged armour she is wearing.

" **Two**."

Kain is holding himself against Mirajane, while Zancrow and Caprico are busy trying to defend themselves against invisible attacks that launched at them from nowhere and everywhere at the same time. There is still no hide nor hair of Azuma. Is he _still_ trying to bring the Great Tenrou Tree down? He needs to hurry!

In any case, Rustyrose is on his own.

" **One**."

"Sacred Guardian Beast, Lufisa the Leviathan!" Rustyrose quickly imagined and summoned a sea monster capable of creating tsunamis with nary a thought. He needs to hold Gildarts back for as long as possible, for the sake of reaching the Ultimate Magic World and obtaining the Magic of One.

"Don't say I didn't show you any mercy."

The leviathan roared as it charged at Gildarts, jaws wide and ready to tear Fairy Tail's Ace into two. Rustyrose quickly called upon waves of sea serpents from the depths of his endless imagination at the same time, hoping to overwhelm Gildarts.

"All Crush."

The only thing Rustyrose registered first and foremost was pain. A lot of pain. His vision went swimming and he barely registered the icy feeling of being submerged in the sea as he sank deeper and deeper. A part of his brain registered the sight of blood oozing from various parts of his body, and his arm is definitely bending in the wrong direction.

"Told you I'm not good at holding back."

The sounds of battle drifted further and further and Rustyrose is losing the fight against the closing of his eyes. The only thing he managed to do before he drifted off into unconscious was to conjure a sea creature to bring him to safety before he drowned, and accepting the fact that he had lost.

* * *

"Why would you pit Gildarts against the mage that can use the Arc of Embodiment, Master Mavis?" Warren asked perplexedly as the remaining group of Fairy Tail mages began their trek to Hargeon port to wait for the safe return of their friends. "Won't pitting him against Bluenote be a better idea?"

"I know Precht. He is a cautious man, and he will never send out his Ace immediately. The short span of time the moment the battle started is our best chance in reducing Grimoire Heart's fighting strength immediately and to catch Precht off guard. Only Gildarts can do this since the Arc of Embodiment is a powerful magic. Only Gildarts has the ability to destroy anything the mage named Rustyrose threw at him. Defeating Rustyrose is a must, he is the most versatile mage in Grimoire Heart and by extension, the most dangerous." Mavis replied in confidence. They had done all that they could do. Now the only thing left to do is to have faith in the guild and wait for their safe return.

"And after that?" Freed inquired.

"We take away their greatest strength."

* * *

"Master Precht… I don't want to believe this, but it really is you."

"It's been a long time, boy." Hades said in amusement as they both stared down each other. He has no idea why Ultear Arc of Time had failed earlier, but Bluenote is currently lifting the airship up with his Gravity Magic. This short period of time is enough for him to take down Makarov.

What worried Hades is the small sense of unease pooling at the bottom of his gut. Somehow, it feels like some divine power is up there, interfering with his plans. The way Makarov and his brats had responded to the arrival of his guild's airship is too smooth and quick for it to not be planned.

"Was Azuma compromised?"

"If you are talking about the mage with the ability to fuse with trees, then Mystogan had already defeated him." Makarov replied as he stared resolutely at his predecessor. "Leave, Master Precht. This is the last chance for you to do so. You cannot win this battle."

"You cannot beat me, boy."

"I know." Makarov replied with a large grin that immediately got Hades on alert. Why is Makarov so confident?

"But like me, my brats had all inherited the spirit of Fairy Tail."

* * *

"Their greatest strength would be their guild master, right? The one who was our Second Master?"

"Yes." Mavis said softly as she continued to walk with the new generation of Fairy Tail, only visible to those who bore the guild mark of their guild. For all of her smarts, she still cannot figure out why Precht decided to walk on this path. What happened?

"Bickslow, Cana, and Lisanna needs to succeed if we want to take Precht down."

* * *

"Urgh!" Hades put a hand over where his heart should be as he coughed out blood uncontrollably.

 **HOW**?! HOW HAD HIS HEART BEEN DESTROYED?!

"You were the one who taught me what is the meaning of a guild. You were the one who taught me that magic exists in many forms, be it "Light", "Dark", or even in different shades of colours. It grows alongside us, with Fairy Tail. All of these, I learnt from you." Makarov said as he raised a single fist into the air in his Titan form, ready to strike Hades down from where Hades is floating in the sky.

"I am the Third Guild Master of Fairy Tail. I will protect Fairy Tail, even if it's from you."

* * *

"Our job here is done!" Cana said as she quickly hightailed out of the room they had infiltrated after silently knocking out all of the guards together with Bickslow and Lisanna. They had waited long enough before they finally had the freedom to move around and destroy what is known as the Devil's Heart, Hades supposed source of power based on the knowledge Gemini stole from the dark mage known as Meredy.

"Come on, get going!"

"On it!" Lisanna called out as Carla picked her up. Happy is carrying Cana as Lily took Bickslow.

"I see that several pests had found their way here."

An invisible force pulled them down and slammed them down onto the floor violently.

"G-Gravity Magic?"

"Shit! Bluenote!"

Bluenote strode into the room, a very ugly snarl on his face.

"You flies had just gone and ruined my day. Now I have to-"

Bluenote's words were cut off as an inconspicuous wooden pin fired a magic blast at him, courtesy of Bickslow.

"I will hold him! Run!" Bickslow yelled as the momentary lapse of concentration by Bluenote freed them from his hold. Bickslow took off his visor, revealing his Figure Eyes. He needs every fighting chance he can get against someone on Bluenote's level.

"You won't be flying today. Fall."

"Argh!"

"Bickslow!"

"GO!"

With a desperate blast of magic power, Bickslow commanded one of his soul that is inhabiting a wooden pin he brought around to fire an attack that forced Lisanna and Cana to get out of the airship by blowing a huge hole in it, causing the two females mages to fall through the hole. The exceeds will catch them. His dolls may be affected by gravity, but his magic is not. He can still help his nakama.

"You are going to die."

"Heh, then do it." Bickslow taunted even if he knew that unless a miracle happened, that is what exactly is going to happen. This isn't part of the plan. Bluenote wasn't supposed to arrive so soon.

"I'm going to enjoy crushing you into paste. Your friends will join you shortly, don't worry about that." Bluenote said in a monotone as he held up a helpless and struggling Bickslow, Gravity Magic still active. Bickslow cannot do anything but to try and capture Bluenote's gaze with his Figure Eyes. However, Bluenote is not giving him the chance to do so.

"Oi, hands off."

The crash of a roar of thunder hit Bluenote and sent him flying, forcing him to let go of Bickslow at the same time. Bickslow tumbled onto the floor, heaving for air as the gravity lifted.

"Seriously, I'm gone for only like, what? Two months? And this happens? You guys are seriously pathetic. What the hell is El doing?"

"Laxus!" Bickslow cried out in relief. Laxus is back! _He's really back!_

"Get out of here, Bickslow." Laxus said as he took off his signature coat and dropped his rucksack onto the floor. Laxus's voice is calm, but there is no hiding the anger beneath it. The increasing crackle of lightning covering his body said it all.

 _Laxus is absolutely **pissed**._

"I will handle this monkey. Get out of here, you had done enough. Good job."

"Get back safely!" Bickslow yelled out as he quickly transferred his souls into bigger objects that he can see lying around, so that he can use them to fly in the air. "The Thunder God Tribe and all of us will be waiting for you! We will all go back together!"

"I won't be long."

"So, you are Laxus, Makarov's grandson."

The shifting of rubble caught Laxus's attention as the airship began to fall. It will crash into the sea anytime now. Bluenote walked out of the huge hole in the wall that he was punched into, largely unscathed except for the bruise on his face.

"I wonder, can you fly?"

"I don't know about that." Laxus replied as he appeared in front of Bluenote in a flicker of yellow and lightning. In a split second, Laxus punched Bluenote out of the falling airship. All his anger, rage, and fury unleashed into the lightning that is under his command. Gravity Magic is helpless in the face of his wrath.

"But if you want to fly so damn much, I can help you. You can keep the damn change."

* * *

"I wonder when Laxus will arrive. You think he is with them by now?" Natsu pondered out loud. "I'm cannot wait to fight him again when he comes back!"

"Judging from his speed and his last known location, he would be there by now." Mavis reassured the mages as they waited by the port. For the sake of helping the ones at Tenrou, she had planned strategies after strategies for every scenario she can think of, including on how everyone can come back home alive should things go awry. It's hard, being the ones to wait, but they need to have faith.

"Who did you let Laxus battle?" Mest asked. His magic is utterly drained, but thankfully, he can still walk around without support.

"Bluenote. He is the only one available that can hold his own against someone of Bluenote's calibre while Gildarts goes around demolishing the rest of the Seven Kin. It is the fastest and safest way to win our war against Grimoire Heart."

* * *

"Crushing Evil, Spreading the Truth: Empyrean!"

Gildarts smirked as he sent the Fire God Slayer flying. That psychotic brat won't be getting up anytime soon. Seriously, what did Hades feed his mages? That fire brat was absolutely crazy!

"Hero of Rubengard, San Jiao Shin!"

Waves of sharp pink petals intercepted the summoned general as Gildarts used this opportunity to close the distance with the goat man. From what ( _What's her name? Yuki…yes? Yukino? Ah, that's it, Yukino. He will need to find some time to get to know the little girl after this_ ) they know from Gemini, this goat man is a Celestial Spirit possessed by a crazy man that knows the Lost Magic, Human Subordination Magic. The information Yukino's Celestial Spirit had gotten for them was a literal godsend. The fact that Loke can travel all the way to them from Magnolia with his own powers by hopping between the Celestial Spirit World and the Human World had also helped them to come up with a sure-fire way to win this battle, since the Lion Spirit had brought along a lacrima orb for the Tenrou group and the ones with Master Mavis to communicate with each other before this shitshow started. Combined with the strategies their deceased First Master had planned for them ( _How is she still floating about here in the world of the living? Isn't she dead?_ ), things are going well for Fairy Tail.

It was also a good idea on Mavis's part to pair him up with Elden. Between his offensive powers and Elden's defensive powers, they make a good duo. Together, they are unstoppable.

No wonder the lazy kid and Laxus were near unstoppable during their youth. An absolute offense combined with absolute defense, it is the worst nightmare for anyone who found the duo as their enemies.

Elden and Mystogan are playing support, taking great care to stay hidden and out of sight as they unleashed spells that can help their fellow S Class mages in their respective battles. Elden and Mystogan are the hidden trump cards for this battle. While Gildarts may seem like the biggest threat, he would not be able to even unleash half his power if he is fighting on the sea like what they are doing now. He does not have the capability to fight underwater or in the sky, that is the weakness of his magic.

But the floating platforms of barriers Elden conjured for him made that problem non-existent. Even without Gildarts speaking a word, Elden seemed to know where he would go next, helping him to make the most out of every situation as the Barrier Mage transported him around. Not only that, Elden and Mystogan are somehow able to multitask while aiding him, providing aid to the other S Class mages on their side by blocking any attacks that might be fatal for them or casting supportive spells to aid them.

The Aegis of Fairy Tail indeed. Elden makes a damn good shield. He would make a great successor as the Ace of the guild. Mystogan had gotten scarily strong as well the moment he acquired an innate magic. Gildarts is very sure that Mystogan wasn't this strong before he left on his century quest.

Gildarts grinned as he engaged the goat man in close combat. Human Subordination Magic is a huge problem for them, but with Mystogan's Repeater Magic replicating the effects of this Lost Magic to use against the goat man, they cancelled each other out. Zoldeo may possess the body of a Celestial Spirit, but he is in the end, still human. They are now on even ground.

"I'm gonna exorcise you."

With a single punch, Gildarts punched a hole through the goat man with sheer force alone. There is no need to show mercy to these scums. They are dark mages, and while some of them had tragic pasts based on what Gemini found out, not all of them are innocent. Some of them are indeed the lowest of the low.

Besides, these people had planned to invade Tenrou Island with the intention to kill his fellow guild mates if need be. For that alone, Gildarts won't show mercy. As the Ace of the guild, he will do everything that is necessary to keep his guild safe.

A pained cry screeched out as a human figure emerged from the goat man in his spiritual form. Gildarts watched impassively as Zoldeo screamed in pain from having himself forcefully ejected from the Celestial Spirit, Capricorn.

"Crush."

With another blast of his magic, Gildarts obliterated Zoldeo's spiritual form. This is the only mercy he can give to this man, a quick and painless death.

"MIRA!"

Elden's worried shout from somewhere made Gildarts turn to where Mira is, just in time to see her falling towards the sea. Her time limit in using Satan Soul seems to be up, and a certain overweight mage is now charging up an attack to finish her.

"EL! PUSH ME THERE!"

The only reply Gildarts got was a push of an unseen force that propelled Gildarts towards the dark mage at a rapid speed. From the corner of his eye, he saw a spherical barrier catching and surrounding Mira before Mira disappeared from view. Elden must have hidden her away.

Mira had held on long enough as per the plan. It's time for him to take over. He's surprised that Mira managed to last as long as she did, considering how much she had been using her magic today.

"Wow-wee! Iron Doll!"

Gildarts frowned as he and the surprisingly nimble fatso danced around each other in their fight. This magic is one troublesome magic alright.

"Repeater Magic: Fire God's Supper"

Gildarts grinned when the dark mage got himself burned by Mystogan, who is hiding himself by turning his body invisible. Mystogan's Repeater Magic is one heck of a cheat.

The fatso with a doll yelped as he quickly changed his body's property to water and merged with the sea itself. The sea rose like a huge tidal wave that soon eclipsed the sun, threatening to drown them all.

Heh, now **_that's_** a challenge.

* * *

"Divide and conquer, huh?"

"That's right." Mavis ruffled Yukino's hair affectionately. Yukino was a key player in the grand scheme of things due to what her Celestial Spirit can do. If it wasn't for her, her plans couldn't have even taken shape.

"But what if Gildarts is unable to defeat all of them?"

"That's why I placed him with Elden and Mystogan. The three of them can handle any S Class mage from Grimoire Heart easily, three on one. Come to think about it, Mirajane should be running out of magic right about now."

"What?!" Yukino shouted worriedly. "Mira-nee is **_what_**?!"

"Don't worry. She will be safe with Mystogan and Elden keeping an eye out for her. If my calculations are right, Grimoire Heart should only have Kain, Ultear, Meredy, and Bluenote left standing. We only lost one member in the form of Mirajane, who should be safe and away from the fighting by now."

"I just received a call from Lucy! She somehow got Capricorn's key too!" Warren said excitedly as he ended the call with the members of the guild they had to leave behind at Magnolia. Mest wasn't able to bring all of them with him earlier due to the steep cost of magic to teleport so many people from Magnolia to Hargeon, so other than those Mavis needed to bring along to Hargeon, the rest of them had to stay behind and catch up as soon as possible by foot. The worries that the S Class mages had in that Grimoire Heart might turn their sights on their guild in Magnolia was a valid one, but no matter how Mavis thought about it, there's no reason as to why Precht would want to do so, even if Fairy Heart is stored in their guild's basement. There's no reason she can think of on why Precht will attack the guild at Magnolia, especially once she had confirmation about his motives using the stolen information Gemini had gotten for them. There's no need for them to stay at the guild, they can all come to Hargeon to wait for the Tenrou group's safe return.

"If only I have more magic, Gemini might be able to do more."

"You will in time. Relax, you are still young, you will have time to grow into your full strength." Mavis encouraged the young girl.

According to Yukino, Gemini can only transform into someone that is on the same level of power as their summoner or below. Yukino is also definitely far from S Class as of now. However, if it is just stealing information without the need for copying and transforming into their target, it is still doable and within Gemini's capabilities. A simple touch is all Gemini needs, even if the target is a lot stronger than Gemini's summoner.

And that was all Mavis needed to start formulating her elaborately crafted strategy. All she needed was information about their enemy.

Know thy self, know thy enemy, and you shall win a hundred battles without loss. Precht will lose because he had underestimated his enemy. Considering that he was the Second Master of Fairy Tail, it is a huge oversight on his part. He of all people should know to not ever make an enemy out of Fairy Tail.

Loke's ability to freely travel between the Human World and the Celestial Spirit World was the next critical step to their plans. With Loke's help, they can pass on a lacrima orb to the Tenrou group so that communications between them can be established, so that her plan can be conveyed to the S Class mages before the start of their battle with Grimoire Heart. With that, they were able to collaborate with each other before Grimoire Heart arrived, to put her plans into motion.

"Jellal and Erza should be wrapping up their battles right about now." Mavis said with a smile, catching the attention of the mages around her.

"If it's Erza, then victory is certain."

"Yeah, she's scary."

Natsu visibly shivered from the phantom pains he can feel on his body simply at the mention of Erza's name.

"Tell me all about it."

* * *

"Moon Flash!"

Meredy barely dodged Titania's attack. She's outclassed, and she knows it. Erza is a scary opponent to go up against even for her. Still, she cannot falter here. For Ultear, she has to win this battle.

Meredy wanted to stop Erza by linking Erza's senses with Jellal, letting them share each other's pain and injury so that Ultear will have an easier time to take Jellal down, who is her equal in strength since they are both former members of the Ten Wizard Saints. However, Jellal and Erza doesn't seem to be even the least bit affected by the shared pain. Instead, the pain only further fuelled the strength behind their attacks. Erza never allowed Meredy the time to use her Sensory Link to cause further harm after that, her attacks are too fast and too strong for Meredy to do anything else other than to defend frantically. She cannot be of any help to Ultear in her current state.

"Pleiadas!"

"Ultear!"

Meredy let out a worried shout when Jellal's spell smashed Ultear into the huge floating platform of ice Ultear had created to be their foothold on the vast sea. Meredy did a desperate slash of her swords to separate herself from Erza and immediately ran to Ultear's side. Jellal definitely holds a grudge towards Ultear for what she did to him, she needs to ensure Jellal cannot hurt Ultear any further!

"This ends now, Ultear."

"Don't act so cocky. If it wasn't for those stupid barriers constantly getting in my way and defending the both of you, you wouldn't have it that easy." Ultear said as she spat out some blood from her mouth and stood back up.

"You simply chose the wrong guild to pick a fight with. My brother is called the Aegis of Fairy Tail for a very good reason." Jellal replied coldly as he began to take a specific stance in the air, his left hand pointing downwards and his right hand upwards. "You had played me like a puppet for eight long years and used me to cause harm to many innocent people. I won't allow another to share the same fate as I do. I will stop you today, right here."

Meredy saw Ultear's eyes widening in fright as the clouds above began to swirl. The both of them put their arms in front of their faces to protect themselves as a powerful cyclone was formed and the resulting violent gale sent them skidding backwards on the platform of ice they are standing upon. A glowing orb began to form from the eye of the storm as it gradually grew bigger and bigger.

"Meredy, run!"

"I'm not leaving you behind!"

"None of you are getting away. True Heavenly Body Magic: SEMA!"

"Ice-Make: Rosen Krone!"

A garden of roses made of ice bloomed and rose to intercept the falling meteor Jellal had decided to drop down upon them. Meredy can only watch as Ultear gave it her all to destroy Jellal's spell, even if it meant using the magic she hated most. Was Jellal that strong all along?!

"Flash Forward!"

The orb that Ultear always brought along with her multiplied into numerous copies and smashed themselves into the falling meteor. It is obvious that Ultear is also visibly straining herself as she tried to deteriorate the falling meteor by accelerating its time forward, to crumble it into dust. However, at this rate, she will not make it in time. The meteorite is simply too big. Meredy ran forward without hesitation, she can still help Ultear.

"Maguilty Rays!"

To Meredy's frustration, the Queen of Fairies, Erza Scarlet, intercepted her attack and with a harsh kick to her gut, sent Meredy flying backwards and back onto the platform of ice.

"Stay there, don't interfere with Jellal's fight."

" **RRAAARRRRRGGHHH**!"

With a desperate shout, Ultear increased the output of her magic. Gigantic roses continued to bloom and curled around the meteor, even if they cracked and shattered the moment they come into contact with the falling debris. The meteor's descent slowed, and to Meredy's delight, eventually came to a stop, just right before it could hit them.

Meredy smiled. _Ultear did it_! Ultear had stopped Jellal's best spell!

"Not bad, but how about a second one? Can you stop that?"

Meredy's eyes widened in shock the moment she spotted it.

"ULTEAR! **RUN**!"

A second meteor fell out of the sky and hit the first one, pushing the first meteor down and sending them down into the deep sea. The impact of Jellal's spell created a massive tsunami that washed Meredy away as she closed her eyes and screamed Ultear's name. Ultear couldn't have died. _Ultear couldn't have died!_

Meredy opened her eyes when she found herself surprisingly dry and untouched from the seawater the moment the tsunami subsided. A protective sphere of ice, shaped in the form of a bed of roses surrounded her as she floated on the surface of the sea.

Ultear… did she just spent the last of her magic protecting her?

The ice shattered at the next instant, and Meredy flinched when Erza's angry visage stared down at her. Meredy desperately tried to call upon her magic, only for her magic to sputter before fading away.

Of all times for her to run out of magic to summon her swords, it has to be now.

Erza raised the arm that was holding onto her sword into the air and Meredy closed her eyes in fear. If she's lucky enough, it will be quick.

She can only hope that Ultear is safe. If not, then she will join her soon enough.

 _I'm sorry, Ultear. I wasn't able to help you reach the Ultimate Magic World. I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry, I'm so-_

The blow never came.

"Don't…" Meredy opened her eyes again and saw Ultear's back facing her. Her eyes travelled further up and she let out an uncontrollable gasp. Ultear had blocked the blow meant for her with her bare hands, holding onto Erza's sword without any form of protection. Her palm is bleeding profusely as she gripped tightly onto Erza's sword.

"Don't… hurt… Meredy… She's innocent." Ultear panted out as she used the last of her strength to stop Erza. "Kill me if you want, let her go."

"Erza." Jellal's voice could be heard as he floated down to stand behind Erza. He put a hand on Erza's shoulder, who still has a furious and dark look on her face.

"We won, it's over. Let them go, Erza."

"They hurt you. You were controlled by her, being forced to be a criminal all because of her selfish desires. You were **_brainwashed_** , Jel."

"I know."

"The Tower of Heaven. They caused us so much pain. They killed Uncle Rob."

"…I know."

"Even then, you want to let her go?"

"Yes."

"I'm not that kind."

"Erza, please." Meredy and Ultear stayed silent, not daring to breathe another word as they watched and listened to the conversation taking place. "Let them go, we are better than them. I… I don't wish to hurt anyone anymore, even if it's Ultear. I had hurt enough. Don't sin for my sake."

"… ** _Fine_**." Erza visibly gritted her teeth and to Meredy's relief, withdrew her sword. Meredy immediately ran up to Ultear, who had collapsed the moment Erza decided against giving them the finishing blow.

"Go, get out of my sight. Don't let me see the both of you ever again. Don't let me catch wind of the two of you doing evil deeds again. The next time, I won't be as merciful."

Meredy nodded to Erza's words as she quickly helped Ultear up. Nothing is more important than Ultear's safety. It's obvious that their guild had lost. The Seven Kin of Purgatory had been easily wiped out by Fairy Tail's S Class mages. Kain was battling Gildarts somewhere earlier, but he couldn't be seen anywhere now. The three of them were the last of their group. Azuma had never appeared throughout the entire battle. He must have fell even before they reached the island, even if she doesn't know how.

The battle for Zeref had been a failure right from the very start. They had underestimated Fairy Tail. Fairy Tail is just too strong.

Meredy let out a silent sigh of relief when Erza and Jellal turned around and left, taking off into the air. Ultear shakily created a boat made up of ice for the two of them, and Meredy quickly took the oars and rowed the boat, trying to get them out of here as soon as possible. Ultear needs to get her wounds treated quickly and this is no place to do so. Jellal hadn't pulled any punches.

Meredy doesn't know how long it took her, but the island is now out of sight. Throughout the entire duration, she and Ultear didn't exchange a single word. Ultear is obviously lost in her thoughts and Meredy doesn't want to disturb her, but seeing Ultear in such a state is scaring her as well.

She had never seen Ultear so broken and lost before.

"How did you find me?" Meredy broke the long silence and asked softly the moment they are a safe distance away from Tenrou Island. There's no way she can think of that Ultear could have found her so quickly and stopped Erza from slicing her into two.

Ultear managed a shaky smile as she raised her right arm. Right on her wrist is a familiar seal inked on it.

"I don't know if you realised it, but you linked yourself to me right when Jellal's second meteor fell. Our feelings were connected, it allowed me to find you."

Meredy took a look at her own wrist. True to Ultear's words, she had unconsciously activated her Sensory Link. Did she activate it and instinctively linked herself to Ultear out of fear the moment Erza found her? She had thought her magic had been depleted. Why didn't she realise it until now?

And… what is Ultear feeling _guilty_ for? Why? Why is she feeling such a huge sense of guilt emitting out of Ultear?

"Meredy, I… I have something to tell you."

"It can wait, Ultear." Meredy cut Ultear off. For some reason, she has a feeling that she doesn't want to know what Ultear is about to tell her.

"Meredy-"

"Later, Ultear. We need to get your wounds treated." Meredy said quickly as she cut off Ultear's words and increased the speed of her rowing. The guilt she felt from Ultear is so strong that she knew she had to cut the Sensory Link off. Whatever Ultear wanted to tell her, she doesn't want to know. If Ultear felt so much guilt towards her for some reason, she doesn't want to know just what Ultear wanted to tell her. She doesn't want to know.

At least, not right now.

* * *

"I don't know how you knew about the Devil's's Heart, but if you think destroying it is enough to take me down, then you are **_wrong_** , boy. I will reach the Ultimate Magic World, one way or another."

Makarov hacked out a cough as he was forced to revert back to his original size and fell towards the sea. Out of the many plans their First Master had thought up for them, none of it accounted for the possibility of his heart giving him problems **_now_** of all times.

Why must his old age catch up to him now?! Right when his children needed him the most?! He needs to continue to hold Precht back for the sake of his children!

"I dance with magic freely, boy. Someone like you can never hope to beat me." Hades said as he began to draw up his strongest spell with his fingers.

"Amaterasu Formula 100."

"Gramps!"

Hades' eye glanced to his right as a speeding bullet of lightning raced through the skies to get to Makarov. So that is Laxus, Makarov's grandson. How time flies.

Still, Hades knew with certainty that Laxus won't make it in time.

" **GRAMPS**!"

Hades watched on calmly as the huge explosion from his spell produced a shockwave so strong that it temporarily parted the sea that they are on. If Makarov is lucky, he might be able to come out of it without losing a limb.

However, there's no way he could come out of it alive. He made sure of it.

Hades dodged a fist of lightning as Laxus is onto him immediately, trying to get a punch onto him in a fit of rage.

Annoying flies. Where's Bluenote? Bluenote's magic signature had disappeared a short while ago. Had Laxus done him in?

Hades growled as his magic chains latched onto the lightning mage and threw him far away. This isn't going according to plan. **_NONE OF IT_** HAD GONE ACCORDING TO PLAN! HE HASN'T EVEN YET TOOK A SINGLE STEP INTO TENROU ISLAND! **_HOW_**?! HOW HAD HIS PLANS GOT FOUND OUT?!

Was it Azuma? No, that can't be, Azuma is loyal to a fault. Then how? How did Fairy Tail managed to counter each and every of his mage so perfectly? The Seven Kin of Purgatory that he had painstakingly raised for this very occasion of obtaining Zeref? It's like Fairy Tail knew their capabilities inside and out!

And why? **_Why_** does this felt as if Mavis was orchestrating the entire counterattack? The entire counterattack launched by Fairy Tail that he had witnessed gave him a heavy sense of déjà vu. It is too similar to what Mavis would have done for him to feel comfortable. Her body is still trapped in the lacrima hidden away in the basement of Fairy Tail's guild building in Magnolia, but there's no way she could have woken up.

So, **_WHY_**?! **_HOW_**?!

"Chill, Sparky, I got Master. He's alright."

"What the hell have you been doing, lazyass?! I disappeared for only two months. **TWO MONTHS**!"

"Shut up, pikachu. At least I'm not late. Were you taking your own sweet time or something?"

"What did you say? You want a fight? And what the hell is pikachu?"

The steam that resulted from Hades' spell superheating the seawater was suddenly blown away as the two mages that had been giving him the most trouble for his guild finally made their appearance.

Mystogan and Elden. The greatest enigmas and the most secretive mages of Fairy Tail. If it wasn't for them preventing each and every of his Seven Kin from unleashing their full strength properly, Fairy Tail wouldn't have fend their attacks off with such success. If it wasn't for Elden raising barriers to continuously defend the Fairy Tail mages from harm, they wouldn't have gotten out with so little injuries. If it wasn't for Mystogan's mysterious and confusing ability to counter every single high-level spell his Kin threw at them, even going so far as to replicate the spells that his Seven Kin used without trouble, his Seven Kin would have been able to fight with greater freedom. Just _what_ kind of magic did Mystogan wield?

If it wasn't for Makarov blocking with him at every turn, he would have personally searched for Elden and Mystogan and destroyed them in less than a minute. If it wasn't for the fact that his Devil's Heart was destroyed for seemingly no reason when it was supposed to be safe, he would not have needed to take such a long time to defeat Makarov.

Now he really has a sinking feeling that some divine power up there is **_definitely_** interfering with each and every single one of his plans.

"Fairy's Adamantine Sphere." Elden said with a grin as a golden sphere of barrier enveloped around Makarov, protecting him from harm. Hades looked on closer. It looks suspiciously similar to one of the three great fairy magic, Fairy Sphere.

"How's this, Laxus? Bet you can't do something like this with Fairy Law."

"You alright, Master?" Mystogan asked in concern as Makarov slowly sat up from within Elden's barriers.

"Yeah… didn't break any bones." Makarov groaned as he raised a hand to rub his temple. "I'm definitely too old for this shit."

"Leave this to us, Gramps." Gildarts spoke as he floated on a barrier that Elden had raised. "Go get a cup of tea or something. We got this."

"Happy, take Master out of here. He is in no condition to be fighting any longer." Erza said as she hovered in the air with Jellal, joining her fellow S Class mages.

"Aye sir!"

A blue cat flew down from the clouds and swiftly took Makarov away from the battlefield. The two soon disappeared when the both of them flew into Tenrou Island. Where had the cat been hiding all this time?

"I don't care if you were our Second Master or what not. You mess with us, you jolly well be prepared to go down, **_hard_**." Gildarts said as his crushing magical pressure released in waves.

"Zeref on our island or not, we won't allow you to take a single step further." Erza declared as she requipped a new sword in her hand, replacing her damaged one. "No one gets away after trying to harm one of our own."

"You will be stopped here." Jellal, the ex-member of the Ten Wizard Saint, stated with confidence.

"Remember the plan." Mystogan said as he shimmered and faded from view, turning invisible once more.

"Try to catch up, Sparky, or we are going to leave you behind in the dust." Elden said to Laxus as the both of them stood on the air as if there is an invisible floor beneath them. Surprisingly, Elden didn't hide himself from view like what he did in the earlier battles.

"What are you talking about? You are the one who can barely stay awake for anything more than half an hour. Don't slow me down, sleepyhead."

"I don't want to hear that from you, Mr I-only-drink-orange-juice."

"Wait, is that true?" Gildarts asked, ignoring Hades. "Laxus only drinks orange juice?"

"Huh, I didn't know that." Erza added, her curiosity blatantly obvious.

"… Let's focus on our battle at hand."

"Don't divert the question! And seriously, you got yourself **_excommunicated_**?! Really, Laxus?"

"Shut up, old man."

" **You damn brats**." Hades seethed as he ripped off his eyepatch and the power of the Demon's Eye coursed through his body in an instant, releasing a vast amount of magic power around him. His beard, hair, eyebrows, and moustache began to jut out. His voice took on a sinister tone but he really cannot be bothered about the transformation right now. This is simply not his day. _YEARS_! YEARS OF HARD WORK DOWN THE DRAIN JUST LIKE THAT!

" **I only wanted to take Zeref quietly, with as little casualties as possible out of the little sentiments I still hold for Fairy Tail. But now, all I want to do is to crush and kill you like the insects you are**."

Hades looked up at the group of Fairy Tail mages as his demonic powers surged through him. It doesn't matter even if his Devil's Heart was destroyed, even if its destruction took away a huge chunk of his powers. He is far from helpless without it. He is the one who would reach the Ultimate Magic World.

" **Say your prayers, Fairy Tail, for it will be your last**."

"Shaddup."

A bolt of lightning crashed into him as Laxus initiated the opening salvo with a powerful punch, which Hades stopped with a single hand.

"EL! GILDARTS!"

"Fairy Thread."

"All Crush!"

" **Fools. Do you think I will fall from attacks of that calibre**?"

"He is tougher than he looks." Erza narrowed her eyes as she watched Hades walked out of the combined attacks of Gildarts, Elden, and Laxus with barely a scratch.

"But he is not invincible. No one is." Jellal said as he observed calmly and gave Erza a gentle smile. "Let's just get this over and done with, and then we can all go home."

"Yeah, let's."

Erza smiled back at Jellal, her long scarlet hair floating behind her in the wind before the remaining six S Class mages of Fairy Tail charged at Hades.

They are all going home today, together.

" **Come! Fairy Tail**!"

* * *

 **AN: Sorry if you guys were expecting a detailed description for each and every battle, but the Tenrou arc would never be finished if I really did that. This is the only way I could write about the battles given what limited time I have, and even then it took me close to 18 hours to write these two chapters out. It's like, 3.30 am in the morning now and I am starting to go cranky from the lack of sleep, so pardon my cranky way of speaking. The only thing I hoped I captured properly here is Mavis's intellect, which earned her the name of Fairy Tactician in her time. I'm starting to hate writing about geniuses with Shikamaru's level of intellect.**

 **Here's hoping that you guys enjoyed the chapter.**


	24. Chapter 24- December 16, X784

Things have turned out for the better. I'm not sure if this is by pure luck or karma, but things have gone way better than I had hoped.

How could I have forgotten about Master Mavis?

Master Mavis truly did live up to her reputation as the Fairy Tactician. Her plan had allowed us to defeat the remaining Six Kin with ease. Bluenote had been defeated by Laxus as well, his Gravity Magic offered him no protection from Laxus's wrath. It woke me up, that I shouldn't have tried to do everything alone. I should have considered asking for help somehow, if it is able to guarantee the safety of my friends.

I had erred. I'm lucky that Master Mavis had turned the situation around to our favour.

Hades is impossibly powerful. Even with the Devil's Heart destroyed, he is still able to hold himself against six S Class mages. I have no idea what he did to get to where he is today, but it probably involves illegal experimentation on Dark Magic. His power is too unnatural.

Right now, we are in the next stage of our plans, which is to defeat Hades. Our strategy had changed. This time, I no longer need to support my nakamas from the shadows.

I'm literally right up in Hades' face.

"Barrier Punch!"

I slammed Hades backwards with a huge barrier fist as my brother kicked him in his spine, power boosted by Meteor. This is a 6 vs 1 unlike the chaotic free-for-all earlier. In the earlier stage, it would be better for me to support my friends from the side, defending them from harm while remaining hidden so that no one can take me out. Support is an important role, a role that requires the person to make many important judgement calls. Supports are the ones who are able to see the bigger picture at hand and call the best shots because their role requires them to oversee the entire battlefield. Supporting my friends by defending from harm and ensuring that I stay in the game long enough to take Hades down was necessary.

However, now that we have the numerical advantage, it's different.

On my end, there's no longer a need to stay hidden and play defensively when it's only one enemy. In this scenario, as a Support Mage that specialises in defence, I need to draw aggro towards myself so that my friends are safe from Hades' power. I'm the one best suited to take everything he unleashed and still be able to keep going. My magic is made for this. Because of this, I'm constantly right up in his face, forcing him to focus his attacks on me.

This is what it means to be a Support Mage. How to support, when to support, what to support, who to support, where to support, among many other things. So many things to consider, so many decisions to make. If you don't have the ability to support everyone, the decision to support one ally over the other can bring about changes on the battlefield. One wrong decision is all it takes for everything to go wrong. You need to be able to make the right judgement call as quick as snapping your fingers.

This is what I want Wendy to learn. Her way of supporting will definitely be different and she definitely cannot copy the same exact way I am supporting my friends with her brand of magic, but the essence of the idea is there. I will have to start teaching her the ways of the Support Mage properly after we all go home.

I won't allow Zeref and Acnologia to rob away seven years of our time. For that, Hades will go down. He is the catalyst behind the entire incident.

Hades called upon magic chains to grab Jellal, only for me to interfere with my barriers blocking it. My Fairy's Aegis smashed into his face, not allowing him the time to even take a break and forcing his attention back to me once more. If all of his attention is on me, then it will give the rest of my fellow S Class mages the freedom to attack him with the least amount of attacks fired at them from Hades.

 **"Amatera-"**

"DISPEL!"

"Lightning Dragon's Breakdown Fist!"

Laxus's punch connected just as I rendered Hades' spell useless before it could take form. Gildarts followed up with his own punch just as I Shinra Tensei'd from the opposite direction, slamming the crazy old man and sandwiching him between our attacks. Erza's slash managed to draw blood, but still not enough to put Hades down.

I yanked Hades back to me using chains of my own, just in time for Laxus and Jellal to fire their own ranged attacks at him. Hades released a blast of magic to defend himself, only for Gildarts to appear through the resulting smoke and rattled his skull with a powerful punch imbued with his magic. It's still not enough.

We need to buy time for Mystogan. He is our secret trump card.

"Move on to the next stage of the plan! Laxus! Jellal! Gildarts! Buy me some time!"

The three of them were onto Hades immediately with Jellal carrying Gildarts. Erza hovered near me to protect me as I tried to use my Requip to call out that particular item.

A huge explosion scattered the three of them as Hades rushed at me in his demonic glory.

 **"You are by far the most annoying opponent I have to face. You will be the first to go down."**

Erza immediately called out a huge shield that blocked Hades' charge only for him to throw her aside with incredible strength. I frowned as I hurried to call that thing out. I've always been rather slow in calling out larger objects from my limited Requip space, although the same does not apply when storing them.

Hades fired his Bullet Magic. The resulting explosion engulfed me and created a dense cloud of smoke that obscured my vision of everyone.

"EL!"

"I'm fine!" I reassured Laxus as Edo me's shield finally made its appearance.

I grinned.

This shield is the full representation of what Edo me can do. This is the entirety of his power and now it is mine to use as well. With this shield, I can last longer in this fight since I don't need to over rely on my own magic.

Thank you, Edo me.

"Anima!"

I can feel a significant amount of Hades' magic being sucked into the shield and Hades obviously sensed the danger behind the attack as well. However, we succeeded. We just cut his strength down even further.

Erza requipped huge thick metal chains that she, Laxus, and Jellal quickly threw and wrapped Hades with. I quickly moved on to use Edo me's next spell. The spell that teleported us to the place where we had our final showdown before I left Edolas.

I'm so going to enjoy this.

"Reality Marble: Unlimited Blade Works!"

The world twisted as we carried out the next stage of Master Mavis' plan.

* * *

"Cana, come out."

Cana flew down from the clouds with Carla's help just as Mystogan shimmered into view. As per the plan Master Mavis had come up with, the other five of the S Class mages will battle Hades in a pocket dimension while he works on finishing the coup de grace when Hades inevitably escapes from this 'Reality Marble' his brother from Edolas had created. What possessed him to actually successfully create such a clinically insane and realistically impossible spell Mystogan will never know, but he is glad that such a spell is now at their disposal.

"I… I'm not sure if I can do this, Mystogan." Cana admitted as the wrapping around her right forearm fell off, revealing the mark of Fairy Glitter on it. It is a spell Master Mavis had loaned to Cana, a spell that only members of their guild can use.

Master Mavis had entrusted the spell to Cana, but she isn't sure if she is qualified to even use this spell. Someone as selfish as her doesn't deserve such an honour. Someone better, someone more worthy, someone more _qualified_ should be the one using this spell.

"You will be fine." Mystogan said in a comforting tone as he held onto her hand, transferring her some of his power. "I will be here for you too. So is Carla. Everyone is counting on you and giving you our support, so you will be fine."

"You can do this, Cana." Carla spoke up, determination and support fierce in her voice.

Cana cannot help but let the smile rest on her face. They are right. She cannot afford to falter now, not when everyone is counting on her. The next step depends on her successful invocation of Fairy Glitter. To defeat Hades, a single cast of Fairy Glitter would not be enough. Now, the only way for them to be able to cast it repeatedly is if Mystogan is able to repeat the spell. However, that means that she has to successfully invoke Fairy Glitter at least once before Hades returns.

If she fails here, then all is for naught.

"Enjoy what you are touching?" She teased and suggestively wagged an eyebrow at the enigmatic mage when Mystogan's hand continued to hold onto hers, and she watched in satisfaction as the reserved S Class mage got flustered at her insinuation. The blush on his face is easily visible even through his mask and there is literal steam poofing out from within all the layers of cloth.

Too easy to tease.

Etching the sight of a flustered Mystogan into her memories, she raised a fist into the air and started the incantation for Fairy Glitter.

"Gather! O river of light that's guided by the fairies!"

Cana's gaze hardened as she continued the incantation. Her family is counting on her. She will not fail here.

She will not fail them again.

* * *

This is her playground.

Erza had never fought with so much vigour and exhilaration in the graveyards of weapons that Elden had transported them to. This is now her show.

Her proficiency with Requip is on the level of a master, but no matter how fast one can be with Requip there will always be a gap in time when one switches from one item to the next, it's just a matter of how small that gap can be reduced to. However, from the array of weapons scattered here in this battlefield, she can take anything as she pleases the moment she so much as takes a single step. There are just so many weapons here for her to choose.

She danced with metal as she showed everyone why people call her the Queen of Fairies. She is the undefeatable fairy queen, the Titania. She never let Hades a chance to even take a breather as her pace got quicker and quicker. Every weapon he destroyed is immediately replaced by another she randomly picked up that is within her reach. Her expertise in handling any and all weapons clearly showed in this scenario, not even needing a split second to get used to a new weapon. Her battle style changed erratically at her whim, keeping Hades on his toes as she randomly discarded a weapon for another different one to throw him off his tempo.

This is another part of Master Mavis's plan. According to her, Hades had never been that good at close combat even if he can hold his own. That was one reason why Elden had opted to go close and personal the moment their final clash with Hades started. This part of their plan was why she had let Jellal be the main fighter when they were facing Ultear and Meredy, fighting relatively conservatively so that she can save her strength right for this very moment. This Reality Marble is why her strength is called upon now in the battlefield, a battlefield that felt as if it was crafted for her very own use.

Maybe Edo Elden really did craft this space with the intention of letting Edo her fight in it. Who knows?

With her keeping Hades busy, the rest of her friends can take a short rest with Elden helping her to block several of Hades' spells every now and then should she need the help. There is no end of weapons for her to use. There is no end to her dance with the weapons at her disposal, not until the final preparations are complete.

She needs to buy time for Mystogan and Cana to complete their coup de grace.

Even with her slashing at Hades without stop, the person who used to be their guild's Second Master is more than capable of facing her in close combat even with his bare hands. However, unlike him, she has help. She has help from her friends. Hades' main fighting strength comes from his vast magical power and the endless list of spells that he knows. Her strength comes from the bond she has with her family.

Together, they can do this.

Hades pointed a finger at her and just right before he could fire his Bullet Magic, Gildarts's spell disassembled Hades' attack, allowing the spear she is currently using to stab into his arm. She gave a twist of the spear to solidify her grip on Hades before trying to pin him into the ground. Hades' spells are powerful. If one attack isn't enough to negate the spell, then another two or three more from her friends will definitely do the trick. Right now, they are just standing some distance away firing their attacks when she needs it, conserving their strength as much as possible.

Hades broke the spear with a chop of his hand and kicked her away before pulling the sharp end out of his body. His wounds closed with an audible hiss of steam.

 **"Nemesis."**

Countless powerful demons rose from the scattered swords around Hades just when Erza landed back onto the ground with her feet. Damn it! She had allowed him to gain distance!

"Six Paths of Pain, activate! Deva Path: Chibaku Tensei!"

A black orb was fired from Elden's shield-like magic tool and everyone watched with unconcealed curiosity as the orb flew higher and higher. Without warning, everything starts to get sucked up towards the orb, dragging the demons Hades had created as well.

Jellal, Laxus, and Gildarts wasted no time in taking over and fighting Hades in close combat again. They cannot allow him the time to rest, to breathe, to cast a spell, and to even think. They need to keep him constantly on his toes.

 **"A puny attack like this will not take down the mighty Hades! Explosion Bullet!"**

"I will block it! Keep going!"

A translucent barrier blocked the explosion Hades had created, allowing the three mages to carry on unhindered.

"RAGING BOLT!"

"Don't get too cocky with me, boy!"

Hades took the attack head on without any visible signs of damage on his body. He charged straight at Laxus, Chain Magic at the ready.

"Altairis!"

A gigantic dark orb was fired in Hades' direction, forcing him to swerve away from the attack and land right into the path of Gildarts' fist. The air itself shattered at the impact and Hades crashed back onto the ground with an earthquake. Somehow among the entire mess, Hades still managed to find the time to reconjure hordes of demons from all the debris in this wasteland of swords and grinding gears. The demons are now charging at them like a massive tidal wave.

"This guy's magic power is fucking insane." Laxus grumbled as he stretched his neck by rotating his head from side to side.

"Language, buzzboy."

"Now's not the time for snarky quips!"

Elden simply let out an unbothered 'meh' at Erza's words as he raised the shield he received from his Edolas counterpart into the air.

"Gates of Babylon!"

A large distortion of space formed behind the group of Fairy Tail S Class mages. Weapons of different types and sizes slowly emerged from the portal in the air. They keep emerging without any hints of stopping and the sheer number of them has Erza wondering if she would ever possess the same number of weapons in her own pocket dimension.

With a point of Elden's finger, the weapons all pointed towards the approaching mass of artificial demons in unison.

"Fire."

To everyone's disbelief, the sky rained metal.

"Edo you is one crazy bastard." Gildarts cannot help but blurt out as the demons get decimated at a rapid speed, but that delighted smirk on his face is only growing larger at the sight in front of him.

"Yeah, and I was once on the receiving end of it. Not fun, I tell you."

"Shall we wrap this up? Literally?" Jellal politely reminded everyone just as Hades burst through the hail of weapons like an enraged warlord.

"Enkidu: Chains of Heaven"

With the incantation that invoked the appearance of the spell, magical golden chains erupted from everywhere and nowhere at the same time in the pocket dimension the group was in. The bladed end of the golden chains easily pierced through Hades' defences and ensnared him, wrapping around his body and binding him in place.

 **"I. Will. Not. LOSE!"**

Despite the chains greedily sucking Hades' magic reserves at an alarming rate, the former guild master of Fairy Tail managed to generate enough power to burst out of his confines. In the blink of an eye, he appeared before Jellal and with a swift fist to his gut, punched him far away. Laxus tried to pummel the ancient mage from behind but got kicked in the face. Another blast of Bullet Magic got him flying away from the team.

 **"AMATERASU FORMULA 80!"**

"DISASSEMBLE!"

Gildarts immediately reacted and tried to dismantle Hades' spell into something harmless but he still wasn't fast enough. Elden quickly reacted and placed himself in front of the current Ace of the guild and the Titania, the front of his shield facing the incoming spell and chanting his own incantation to invoke another spell that is programmed into Edo Elden's shield.

"Seven Rings that cover the Fiery Heavens-!"

An iridescent magenta light bloomed at the front of the shield, spiralling in a light show that quickly took on the form of a giant seven petalled flower. Seven layers of translucent barriers formed in front of the magenta flower, blooming and humming with dense magical power.

 **"RHO AIAS!"**

A bright surge of light from the resulting clash of magic made the very earth groan and hurt the air enough to make it scream. The seven layers of barriers were slowly broken by Hades' spell layer by layer, but Elden continues his chant to further invoke more spells, his other hand that is not holding onto his shield stretched upwards into the sky.

"Whosoever holds this hammer,-"

Four more layers of barriers left.

"-if he be worthy,-"

Another explosion marked the shattering of two more layers of barriers of Rho Aias.

"-shall possess-"

 **"I WILL ATTAIN THE ULTIMATE MAGIC WORLD! DIE, FAIRY TAIL!"**

 **"-the power of Thor!"**

Just as the shield of Rho Aias was finally breached, a roar of thunder could be clearly heard as blue lightning streaked in the air above before raining down from the skies. Hades' eyes widened when a hammer suddenly appeared in Elden's outstretched hand and to Hades' disbelief, the magical tool in the shape of a hammer fired a concentrated bolt of blue lightning right in his face.

Still, not a problem for the mighty Hades. That attack was too telegraphed. Any lesser mage might not have the necessary reaction time to dodge that attack, but he is _Hades_. The person who will bring about a grand age of magic to the world.

Dodging the bolt of lighting that was so concentrated in magical energy that even he wouldn't want to be hit by it, Hades used this chance to finally rid himself of the annoying fly that is also known as the Aegis of Fairy Tail.

Unfortunately, a bigger fly that goes by the name of Gildarts Clive got in his way as he bodily blocked Hades' attack before trying to grapple with him. With a grunt, Hades managed to separate himself from Fairy Tail's Ace before leaping backwards to avoid a lethal thrust of a bright red spear littered with barbs, courtesy of the Titania.

The Queen of Fairies did not falter despite the missed thrust of the spear, but merely reversed the grip of the barbed spear and took a stance in preparation to throw it. Meanwhile, seven spots of lights in the sky shone brightly as a blue-haired mage called upon the power of the stars to fire his next attack.

"Pierce! Gouge! Hit through! Gae Bolg!"

"Be judged by the seven stars! Grand Chariot!"

The barbed spear coated with an ominous shroud of dark magic was thrown in a powerful motion just as Jellal rained down seven blasts of light from the heavens. The speed of both spells left Hades with no choice but to cast his own spells to defend himself. Hades avoided the brunt of the attack and leapt away to gain some distance, fingers already drawing the array for his next spells.

"Oi, Sparky, you done?"

"Yeah, gimme a while to digest that damn fucking good meal. I never tasted lightning so damn delicious before."

The dust settled and Hades finally caught sight of a sparking Laxus, head hung low and is standing incredibly still. However, what worried the ancient mage wasn't the fact that Laxus is sparking, but rather the fact that Laxus is covered in sparks of _red_ lightning.

"Goddamn it, sleepy bumpkin. Just _what_ kind of lightning is this? I feel so… _good_."

Hades' eyes suddenly widened in realisation when he spotted the relative position of Elden and Laxus from each other before he was reminded of something.

 _That blue lightning! It wasn't meant for him in the first place! It was meant for Laxus to consume the whole time! Mages that utilise Slayer magic power up by consuming their corresponding element!_

"Then hurry and beat his ass!" Elden retorted as he casually threw the hammer in his hands away, its purpose completed. The magic stored in it already depleted with that single blast of lightning.

 ** _"Red Lightning Dragon Mode!"_**

A suffocating pressure of magical energy descended upon the area as dark red lightning erupted out of Laxus's body, blasting a crater on the ground where the Lightning Dragon Slayer is standing.

"This power… it can easily put Laxus on the same level as a Wizard Saint."

Jellal floated back down as he made the comment, sweat dripping from his forehead from the sheer pressure pressing down on everyone. Hades cannot help but to mentally agree with the statement. The power exuded by Makarov's grandson right now is no laughing matter to fight against even for someone as powerful as him.

"Hey, our portable battery here needs to be able to do at least this much if he wants to be the next guild master."

"Shut the fuck up, bookworm."

The only warning Hades received from Laxus was the action of the Dragon Slayer raising his head to meet his gaze. In the next moment, a powerful fist coated with red lightning darker than blood itself connected onto his face, sending him tumbling back to the ground.

If Hades thought Laxus was fast enough previously, Laxus in his Red Lightning form is so swift that Hades could no longer follow the yellow-haired mage with his eyes.

 **"Raiko: Red Lightning!"**

Hades managed to raise his own fist to meet Laxus's own just in time, but there is no denying that _he_ , the almighty Hades, is getting _pushed into a corner_.

This isn't possible.

Hades wasn't allowed the time to think of a countermeasure as a new player jumped into the fray. Gildarts had rejoined the battle. Between trying to defend against Gildarts' blows and predicting Laxus's moves, Hades had no choice but to divert all his attention to both mages just to keep up.

Even then, his heart dipped a little when he spotted Elden passing the Queen of Fairies a weapon that he drew from the shield on his arm. A sword whose blade shines so bright that it appears a pure white but is steadily emitting a golden glow. The amount of magical energy packed in it is even greater than the magical lightning that was previously fired from the dull grey hammer.

Such a dangerous weapon in the hands of an experienced weapons master such as Erza Scarlet can only spell disaster for him.

A small part of Hades' mind also noted that Elden had also fallen back to using his original brand of magic instead of relying on the magical shield.

"Fairy Adamantine Chains!"

Golden chains made from Elden's barriers burst from the ground and bind Hades once more. This time, the chains didn't break no matter how hard Hades tried to use his magic to obliterate the chains to smithereens.

Gildarts bellowed.

 **"End him. Now!"**

"Fairy Thread!"

"Sword of Promised Victory: Excalibur!"

"True Heavenly Body Magic: Sema!"

"Red Lightning Dragon's Heavenward Halberd!"

"Crushing Evil, Spreading the Truth: Absolute Heaven!"

Hades could only watch with wide eyes as the very dimension that he is trapped in cracked just from the immense density of the magical spells thrown his way. On reflex, Hades quickly casted the first defensive spell that came to his mind even if he knew that there is no spell in his arsenal that he can use to completely defend himself in such a short period of time.

It may be his mind playing tricks on him, but somehow, at this moment, Hades clearly heard the words that Mavis had once told him ringing in his ears. Words that he heard when he was still Precht Gaebolg of Fairy Tail.

 _"Unwavering faith and resilient bonds will bring even miracles to your side."_

At this moment, Hades cannot help but think to himself.

 _Mavis, is this the miracle that you speak of?_

Hades never had the time to ponder further on this issue as the ultimate spells of Fairy Tail's S Class mages assaulted him.

He, the mighty Hades, can only scream.

* * *

The magical dimension they are in shattered from the sheer amount of magic power thrown about, bringing them back in the sky above the sea that surrounds Tenrou Island.

Hades grinned. He weathered the worst Fairy Tail had thrown at him. If that is all they have, then there is nothing much to fear. They should be out of magic by now for using their strongest spells like that. He admits that this generation of Fairy Tail mages are impressive, but there's no point wasting time trying to continue this useless skirmish with them. The important thing is to quickly find and obtain Zeref for the sake of his dream.

Hades tried to quickly fly in the direction of the sacred island, only for Mystogan and Cana to stand in his way. The masked mage simply raised the staff that he holds into the air.

"Repeater magic: Fairy Glitter!"

Hades' eyes widened in fear. As the second guild master of Fairy Tail, he knows just how powerful Fairy Glitter is. It is an exceedingly complex and unfathomably intricate Magic that collects and concentrates the light of the sun, the moon and the stars. A spell that radiates a ray of merciless light that denies the existence of nearby foes. The only known spell to rival it is Fairy Law.

Such a spell is extremely difficult and time consuming to cast. Even for someone like him, he will think twice before using it in combat because the casting time is a window of opportunity any experienced mage can exploit against you.

To Hades' amazement and horror, Fairy Glitter was invoked immediately instead of the long casting time he had expected. A halo of light rapidly descended from the skies and headed straight for him. If he gets caught by that halo of light, he is done for.

Right at this moment, the group of mages who were battling him in the other dimension reappeared beside Mystogan and Cana. He needs to do something before the situation could get any worse.

 **"MAXIMUM DEFENSE SEAL: THREE PILLAR GODS!"**

Without hesitation, Hades casted the first defensive spell that comes to mind. When it is obvious that it is not enough, he casted his second spell.

 **"AMATERASU FORMULA 100!"**

If he cannot defend himself against the Great Fairy Magic, then he will destroy it by force.

The magic seals of the Amaterasu surrounded the Fairy Tail mages before swiftly exploding into a rippling shockwave that is huge enough to part even the sea temporarily. An immense cloud of smoke filled the clear blue sky as Hades panted for breath. Judging from the lack of life in his immediate vicinity, he had finally succeeded in defending himself against Fairy Glitter and obliterated his opponents in one fell swoop.

The lethality and power of Amaterasu Formula 100 is strong enough to take out the entire group of Fairy Tail's S Class mages. They were unprepared for him to launch such an attack, that much was obvious.

He slowly straightened his back as he ignored his heavily injured state. Bringing him into another dimension must be a ploy on the S Class mages' part to allow Mystogan time to finish casting Fairy Glitter. That spell requires the user to take a lot of magic power and concentration to even wield properly. You need to be more than just an S Class mage to use Fairy Glitter.

For that, Mystogan has his respect. As the previous guild master of Fairy Tail, he admits that Makarov's soldiers are way stronger than he expected them to be. Still, even with his Devil's Heart destroyed, he is the one who emerged victorious.

Zeref will still be his to claim.

 _Mavis, I'm sorry._

Casting his thoughts about his previous nakamas aside, Hades turned to fly towards Tenrou Island, only to crash against a wall of invisible barriers.

"Going somewhere, old man?"

Hades quickly turned around upon hearing that voice. To his shock, Fairy Tail's S Class mages are alive and unharmed.

 _How?! That spell was supposed to kill them!_

"We never said we were finished." Mystogan spoke coldly as the staves that were floating around him began to glow brightly.

"As is the custom of Fairy Tail's justice system, we shall give you until the count of three. **Kneel**."

An immense surge of magic power began to emit from Laxus as the dragonslayer began to form a familiar brand of magic between his palms.

 _Fairy Law_

 **"Three."** Gildarts stated.

"Repeater Magic Secret Technique: Infinite Repetition! Fairy Glitter!"

A huge pillar of light erupted from Mystogan and Cana, bathing the skies in a golden hue. Hades can only stare in fear and awe as Fairy Glitter shone once more. Instead of a single halo of light, countless halos rained down from the skies, all of them locking onto his position.

 _Mystogan is able to repeatedly cast so many Fairy Glitter?! That's impossible!_

Hades raised his hands to cast another spell, only for ethereal chains to sprout from Elden and wrapped itself against his wrists and legs. Hades immediately tried to destroy his confinements, only to find that he couldn't.

"Don't bother. My barriers are imbued with the magical properties of Fairy Sphere, they are indestructible."

 **"Two."** Jellal's reminder rang loudly in his ear.

Even without his hands, he can still make it. He is the mighty Hades, the one who will lead the world to the Great World of Magic. Decades of hard work cannot be wasted here!

Hades' Demon's Eye pulsed with demonic power as he prepared to call upon the Abyss of Magic.

 **"Black Arts-"**

 **"One."** Erza said in a tone of finality.

It's no use, he is still not fast enough. For the first time in his long life, Hades can do nothing but gape in awe as the Three Great Fairy Magic is being casted in unison against him. His mind whirled as thoughts and memories from a time long past assaulted him.

He should have known better than to go against the guild that Mavis led, the guild which he helped founded.

 _"There is a wall that can't be destroyed with just power."_

 **"Fairy Law, Activate!"**

 _"However, there is a type of power that can destroy that wall. The power of feelings."_

 **"Fairy Glitter, Shine!"**

 _"Fairy Tail. The guild is the ultimate form of kinship and camaraderie that I've hoped for, and it is now right in front of my eyes!"_

 **"Fairy Sphere, Protect!"**

 _"Comrades isn't just a word, comrades are about the heart. It's the unconditional trust in your partners. That's the guild that I want Fairy Tail to be!"_

The last thing Hades saw was a golden sphere engulfing the Fairy Tail mages before the entire sky bathed itself in a radiance brighter than the sun.

* * *

The shockwave from the combined power of the Three Great Fairy Magic can be felt even from where they are on the island.

"Impossible…" Bickslow whispered. Even with his Figure Eyes, he could not tell what is going on right now. The amount of magic exuded from the combined might of the Three Great Fairy Magic is too blindingly bright.

"This means that they won, right?"

"I doubt that even Prec- no, _Hades_ , can come out of that alive." Makarov said with a heavy heart. "I believe this is the first time that our guild's Great Magics were being casted together in this manner. It is something which we will probably never see again."

The warm light from their guild's sacred magic washed over the entire island, bathing and curling around them protectively. They can each feel the magic from their S Class mages that were fighting Hades being mixed into it.

"Unwavering faith and resilient bonds will bring even miracles to your side." Makarov suddenly said aloud to the children around him as they watched the sacred glow lighting up areas even beyond what their eyes can see. "According to our Second Master, that was what the First always preached about. Our guild's Great Magics are there for the sole reason to protect Fairy Tail, in the case that we find ourselves in a situation where we need a miracle on our side. Fairy Law is for deterrence, Fairy Glitter is our sword to smite our enemies, and Fairy Sphere is our shield to protect our guild from harm. Together, they form our guild's Great Magics, our secret trump card. To be able to learn even one of the spells is an exceedingly difficult thing to do. I never thought I would see the day where our guild could cast all three spells together."

"El, Laxus, and Cana, huh?" Mirajane mused. "They are the first three among our generation to join the guild. It's kind of fitting that they would be the ones to wield our guild's Great Magics, isn't it?"

"If you put it that way, I guess it's kind of poetic for things to turn out this way." Pantherlily replied as he scratched his chin with a claw.

"The light is fading." Lisanna said excitedly. "Can you see them?"

Sure enough, the light emitted from the Three Great Fairy Magic is starting to fade away. The mages on Tenrou Island squint their eyes to get a better look in an attempt to spot their fellow guildmates.

"They are fine, look!"

True to Happy's words, the six S Class mages are the only ones still standing in the air. Hades is nowhere to be found.

"They won! They won!"

"They did it!"

"We defeated Grimoire Heart!"

Cheers erupted from the mages who were watching from the island as they celebrated their guild's victory. Makarov, however, closed his eyes and said a mental prayer.

 _I hope you find peace wherever you may be, Master Precht._

"Master?"

"C'mon. Let's go give them the hero's welcome they deserved." Makarov said in the usual shit-eating grin his children know him for. He will grieve for the man that his predecessor once was in private later. Now is the time for celebration.

"Wait, where did they go?"

Lily's comment made their heads swivel back in the direction where their S Class mages were supposed to be. They had just suddenly disappeared into thin air.

They all let out a shocked scream when the group of S Class mages teleported in front of them just at that moment.

"Huh, repeating Mest's magic sure is useful." Gildarts commented as he scratched the back of his head before turning to Mystogan. "Is there _anything_ that your Repeater magic cannot do?"

"There are limits, of course, but right now I believe all of us here would prefer to get back to Hargeon as soon as possible. I don't know about the rest of you, but I've experienced my quota of combat for the entire month." Mystogan replied coolly, somehow emerging from the fight without a single hair out of place. He planted a single stave on the ground as a large magic circle spread out beneath their feet.

"Let's go home." Even behind that mask, everyone is sure that Mystogan is sporting that same smile that they are all now wearing on their faces. "Repeater magic: Direct Line!"

* * *

"Master Mavis! When are-"

"Yukino. It's not like Master Mavis can see what is going on over there. Just wait a little longer, okay?"

"But Juvia! It's been-"

"Don't worry too much, Yuki-chan. The guys there at Tenrou are all crazy strong. They will be fine." Natsu's calloused hand firmly rested on Yukino's head to reassure her. "If anything, I'm actually worried for Grimmer Heart."

" _Grimoire Heart,_ Natsu."

"Eh, sounds the same to me."

"Should I just send Loke to check on them?" Yukino continues to worry out loud despite the entire guild's efforts to get her to stop worrying so much. Those in Magnolia had managed to reach Hargeon in record time and joined them not too long ago.

Now, all that is left for them to do is to wait for the Tenrou group to return.

"They are back."

"Eh?"

Master Mavis' sudden proclamation got everyone to suddenly turn in her direction. The First Master of Fairy Tail turned to her guild with a smile on her face and repeated her words.

"They are back."

There was the sound of air being displaced before a group of familiar faces suddenly appeared among them. The people there looked all beat up and tired, but they are undoubtedly fine.

"El-nii! Mira-nee! Lisanna-nee!"

Yukino threw herself towards her siblings the moment she spotted them. Elden caught her with practiced ease.

"You did well, Yukino. Sorry to worry you. We are alright."

The first thing her brother told her made her vision blur as tears threatened to spill. She quickly wiped it away with the back of her hand before pounding her fist at her brother.

"W-Who said I was w-worried about you! I was worried about Mira-nee and Lisanna-nee!" She huffed, only for Elden to openly laugh and took her pounding fists in stride.

"Yeah right, who was the one who kept-"

"Keep your mouth **_shut_** if you know what's good for you, Gajeel."

Surprisingly, that was what the Iron Dragon Slayer did the moment he heard Yukino's threat.

"You weren't worried about me? Aww, glad to know that my imouto had such faith in my abilities!"

"Go away. You are annoying." Yukino swatted Elden's hand away the moment he tried to ruffle her hair and immediately ran over to her sisters.

"Mira-nee! Lisanna-nee! Are you two alright! Do we need to get Porlyusica to-"

"We are fine, Yukino." Yukino heaved a mental sigh of relief when she heard her older sister say that. "If it wasn't for you, Loke, and Gemini, we might really be in a real pinch. But we all came back alright thanks to you! See?"

"Mira's right. The information your spirit got for us was invaluable." Gildarts said with a grin from where he was standing beside Mira. "Good job, Yukiyo!"

"It's _Yukino_! **Yu-ki-no!** " Yukino replied in annoyance. "At least get my name right you old geezer!"

"O-O-Old?!"

"Woo! Erza's back too! How many asses did you and Jelly beat?"

"Cool it, ash for brains. Let Erza have a break. She's obviously tired."

"What the hell you cut me off for, ice princess? You want a go, huh?!"

"I ain't scared of ya!"

"G-Gray-sama! LOVE RIVAL!"

 **WHAM!**

"I see that some degree of discipline still needs to be instilled in the two of you."

"EEK! We're sorry!"

"Now _that's_ the Erza we know." Lucy laughed as Erza began to 'discipline' the rowdy ice and fire pair.

"All's well that ends well." Makarov gave a stretch as his bones gave off an audible pop. "But before that…"

The guild went deathly silent when Makarov's hardened gaze shifted to his grandson. Nobody dared to breathe as the gaze intensified.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING BY STEPPING FOOT ON TENROU! YOU ARE NOT EVEN A MAN WHO HAS BEEN REINSTATED INTO THE GUILD YET!"

"Ara ara, there Master goes." Mirajane said with a sigh as she rested a palm on her cheek. The Third Guild Master of Fairy Tail is still screaming at his grandson, his face enlarged with Titan magic. "El? Do you mind?"

"Nah, just leave Sparky to his fate."

"Laxus! It's really Laxus!"

Makarov's scolding was cut off as the Thunder God Tribe pounced on Laxus, each of them crying tears of joy.

"Laxus! It's really Laxus!"

"You've come back to us!"

"Waaaahh!"

"Hey! Cut it out! CUT IT OUT! HEY!"

"You know what this calls for?" Natsu said as he leapt on top of a nearby wooden crate and pointed a finger into the sky. The entire guild shared his smile as they answered his question together.

 **"PARTY!"**

* * *

"Bet you guys can't do that!"

"Natsu's a real man!"

"How is stacking cups an act that defines what is a man?"

Mirajane watched in peaceful bliss as her family and guildmates went about partying like crazy in the inn their guild is staying at for the night. It was already evening when they returned from Tenrou and arrived in Hargeon, so Master Makarov decided to just find an inn at Hargeon and booked the entire inn for the guild's usage for the night. They will start making their way back to Magnolia tomorrow morning.

Of course, there's no escape from the mandatory party, because they are Fairy Tail.

"Come on Wendy! You can do it!"

"B-But Yukino! W-We are underage!"

"Cana started drinking when she was way younger than us! Come on, just try it! Just one sip!"

She heard Elden chuckling at her side. The both of them are at a quiet corner of the first floor of the inn where they have a small couch all to themselves. She snuggled and stuck herself to his side, content to just remain like this and bask in his warmth.

"You alright?" She asked in concern. "If you need to turn in early, just do so."

"I didn't overuse my magic this time, so it's fine." He replied as his fingers idly played with the ends of her white hair. "I'm more worried about you. You did overuse Satan Soul."

"Nothing I cannot handle." She assured Elden. "I still couldn't believe that we actually survived another guild war though. Feels quite surreal if you think about it."

Elden remained silent for a few seconds before speaking up.

"Yeah, it does feel surreal. We actually came out alive."

"El?" Mira asked in concern, the expression on Elden's face worried her a little when he was silent. "You okay?"

"It's nothing." Elden shook his head as they watched their fellow guildmates and their antics. The Thunder God Tribe is still orbiting around Laxus. Gajeel is trying to put up a solo performance, only for Natsu to throw a chair at him to get him to shut up. Elfman is trying to convince Mystogan and Jellal to have an arm-wrestling match to determine the manliest out of the two Jellals.

"I'm just really happy, Mira, and I don't really know how to explain."

"Are you now?" She teased as she leaned her face closer to his, unable to hold back the smile forming on her face.

His hand gently caressed her face with a loving look on his face.

"Did I ever tell you how beautiful you look with your hair down?"

"Many times." She replied with her own smile. She didn't tie her bangs in an upward ponytail tonight, instead letting it fall naturally over her forehead. "You also told me that I look pretty with my hair tied up and that I look sexy when I am using Satan Soul. You should just make up your mind already. Just what kind of appearance do you think I look best in?"

"I don't know, maybe… if you are bald? Hmm..."

She pinched him hard for that teasing remark.

She felt him use his magic to protect them from harm when a bottle of wine flew their way. Already, a guild brawl had started in the middle of the inn, the cause of it unknown.

"Oh dear, even Erza's involved."

"They are all drunk." Elden deadpanned.

"Time to get the S Class Trial going again! Fire Dragon Slayer's- oof!"

"I'm the one who will be S Class, matchstick!"

"MAN!"

"Let's go, shrimp! Time to get you that S Class title!"

"G-Gajeel! W-Wait! Let me go!"

"Fight! Fight! Fight!"

Their First Master cheering the mayhem on isn't exactly a very reassuring sight.

"How much do you think the guild has to pay for the damages this time?"

"Let's see…" Elden pondered as his gaze swept across the inn they were both in. "We are both too comfortable to move. Erza's drunk. Jellal's knocked out. So is Gildarts and Master. Laxus can't be bothered to care. Mystogan is nowhere to be seen. Everyone else is either involved in the brawl, too drunk to stop it, or cheering them on. I guess that means we will incur a lot of expenses to be paid for tomorrow?"

"And that means more paperwork for me." Mira sighed. "All the paperwork involving major expenses the guild incurred are prepared by me. Go be a dutiful boyfriend and stop them for me, won't you, El?"

"Aye ma'am." Elden replied in a perfect imitation of Happy before conjuring a flat horizontal pane of barrier above the free-for-all currently happening in front of them before dropping it forcefully on the participants below.

"Ow!"

"Hey!"

"Ah! Stop pressing on me!"

"Let us go!"

"Alright, that's enough from the lot of you." Elden said in a bored voice as he single handedly stopped the brawl by pressing his barriers down on the rowdy members, not allowing them to move. "Break it up, shoo."

"Told you either El-niichan or Mira-nee would stop it." Yukino told Jet as she held a palm up to the Speed mage. Jet grumbled inaudibly before taking out a wad of cash from his pocket and pressed it on Yukino's hand.

"Yukino. I told you to stop betting-"

"Nyeh." Yukino made a face and stuck her tongue out in defiance when Elden frowned in disapproval at what she did.

"Chill a little, El! Yukino's growing up just fine!"

"You are a bad influence, Cana."

"You and Mira are the bad influence. Look at your lovey-dovey position the two of you are in now! Is that something to be shown in front of children?"

Mira looked at how she is currently hugging Elden in an intimate position. Huh, maybe Cana does have a point.

"Ara ara, I guess I should only hug El like this when we get ourselves a room then. I would feel bad if I gave the children in the guild some mental scars." She turned to face her lover and even added a wink for extra effect. "El, shall we go get ourselves a room and… You know?"

She purposely let her words trail off at the end as she leaned in closer to mock whispered into his ear. Judging from how his left eye is twitching, she knows that he knows that she is doing this on purpose to mess with him in front of the entire guild.

Everybody heard her. A chorus of _ooohs_ sounded out from the guild as they all got what she was insinuating. Whistles and catcalls could also be heard as their nakama cheered them on. The only clueless ones are the children like Wendy and Romeo. Yukino had seen her flirting with El long enough to figure out all the sexual innuendos.

Welp, maybe she really _is_ the bad influence.

"Ew! NO! Mira-nee! Go do it somewhere else where we are not around!" Yukino is almost tearing her hair out this time. "Ew! Yuck! Now I cannot unsee it in my head! ARGH!"

"Uhm, Yukino?" Wendy asked perplexedly. "What is Mira-san going to do if she gets a room with Elden-san?"

"Well, uhmm-"

"IT'S NOTHING!" Mystogan made a sudden reappearance out of nowhere and covered Yukino's mouth with a hand, not allowing Yukino to answer Wendy's question. "NOTHING!"

"Dad?' Romeo tugged on Macao's shirt. "What is Yukino and Wendy talking about?"

"Uh, ahh, uhh… Wakaba! Help me out here!"

"No can do! I'm drunk!"

"Like hell you are drunk!"

"You see, Wendy, Romeo, when a girl and a guy love each other very much and they get a room all to themselves. They start to-"

 **"CANA!"**

"Hey, someone has to teach them about _that_ someday!"

Wendy's and Romeo's facial expressions got more and more confused.

"Hey, I don't get what Mira and the rest were talking about either. Happy, do you know?"

"No sir!"

"Why am I not surprised." Lucy muttered in resignation upon hearing Natsu's words.

"Damn it, Mira! This is your fault! Fix this!" Macao yelled in desperation at her direction and Mira laughed. This is way too much fun!

"I can't hear you Macao~"

"Dad? What is it that everybody knows except for me and Wendy?"

"You are too young to be asking! It is adult stuff!"

"But Yukino already knows!"

"I-It's different!"

"You see, Romeo." Mira blinked in surprise when her boyfriend got up from their comfortable position. He walked up to Romeo and squatted down to get himself on the same level as the little boy and patted him on the head in that usual brotherly manner. "When Mira was asking if we should get ourselves a room, she was giving me a hint to-"

 **"EL! NO!"**

Ignoring the collective cries of the rest of the guild that are trying to protect Romeo's and Wendy's innocence, Elden continued. Romeo, on the other hand, shared none of that as he looked at Elden eagerly. The same action is being copied by Wendy, who is more than ready to learn something new that only adults would know.

"It is a hint that as a guy, you absolutely have to be able to pick up, you know? You get what I'm saying?"

Romeo and Wendy both nodded with a serious look on their faces after hearing what El had to say.

"Hey hey Aegis! Stop that, seriously!"

Mira cannot help but burst out laughing. She is already laughing to the point that her stomach is starting to hurt! This is really too much fun! Even Gajeel is being overprotective about Romeo's and Wendy's innocence!

"What Mira is trying to hint to me is that-"

"Someone stop El!"

Mira doesn't know who started it, but immediately the entire guild tried to rush and dogpile him to get their Barrier mage to shut up before the children's innocence got corrupted.

In their haste, they forgot that Elden is a _Barrier_ mage.

"Ah! This stupid barrier! I can't get through!"

"Stop pressing on me! Hey, watch where you are touching!"

"You stink!"

"Well, you stink too!"

"Someone stop El!"

"Geez, can you guys be quiet for a second?" Elden gave a long dramatic sigh before turning to give Wendy and Romeo the so-called important lesson. "What Mira is hinting to me when she told us to get ourselves a room is that-"

 **"EL!"**

"- she is tired of waiting and wants me to-"

 **"EL!"**

"- Propose to her!"

 _Eh?_

The guild went silent. Time stopped. She didn't even blink. She didn't move. Her mind ceased functioning.

Slowly, Elden walked up to her where she was still sitting on the creaky couch where he was sitting next to her not long ago. She could literally hear her heartbeat hammering loudly in her chest. She could feel the heat growing on her face that she is sure is her own doing.

He went down on a single knee in front of her.

"Wait, wait! Not like this!" She panicked as her hands immediately went up to try and tidy her appearance. She's a mess right now. Her hair is not combed. She is dressed in an oversized shirt that is full of creases that wasn't ironed out. She did not apply makeup, not that she usually applies any but still!

"You still look beautiful to me, Mira." He told her with that soft gaze that she had grown to love as he produced a little square box in his hand using Requip, making her freeze once more at the sight of it. She had seen it before when he hid it beneath the floorboard of his apartment and he thought she didn't know about it. She _knows_ what is in that box.

"You told me that you were the one who took the initiative to ask if we wanted to be together and I should be the one to take the initiative to propose to you so, well."

He opened the box, revealing the pair of rings, one ivory one and the other an ebony black.

"Truth to be told, it is supposed to go a lot better in my head." He laughed a little awkwardly and rubbed the back of his head in a sheepish manner that she grew accustomed to seeing. "I've spent at least three nights rehearsing and memorising the lines I am about to say but I cannot remember a single thing right now. So, uh, I will get straight to the point instead."

They looked at each other in the eyes as the world around them came to a standstill. Right now, it is just the two of them.

"Marry me, Mira?"

Nobody moved. Nobody dared to even breathe. She is sure that she never moved the moment he started to propose to her. She knew this day was coming. She was expecting it, yet when the day really arrives, she's…

Just so happy.

"Yes." She whispered, her voice so uncharacteristically soft. She knew how hard it is for a severe introvert like him to bring himself to do something like that in front of everyone. She took another gulp before repeating herself once more.

"Yes."

She can see a truly happy smile breaking out on his face in slow motion. She can hear the guild starting to cheer. She can feel the inn they are at starting to vibrate from the sheer volume of their guild's cheering.

Her mind was still in a daze as he allowed him to slip the black ring on her finger, officially claiming her as his. She is still in a daze when he puts on the white ring on his finger, claiming him as hers. It wasn't when everybody toasted to them that she finally broke out of the spell and jumped on Elden, giving him her biggest and tightest hug that he returned in kind.

"Thank you." She whispered into his ear. "Thank you, El. I'm happy too."

"I will make it my personal SSS Class mission then, to always keep you happy. This is my Century Quest."

She laughed as the guild collectively cringed at the corny joke.

"Ew!"

"Get a room, you two!"

"Control yourselves dammit! Think about the feelings of us single men!"

"I cannot wait to be an Aunt! Isn't that right, Elf-nii? Yukino?"

"El is a MAN! I'm sure we will be uncles and aunts within the next six months!"

"Uh, correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm sure the bun needs to be cooked in the oven for at least _nine_ months."

"You think this is corny?" Mira cannot stop smiling as she said it. She's just so happy. "Why, when I asked El how much he loved me on a scale of one to ten he said it is one divided by zero! Because one divided by zero is mathematically impossible and cannot be defined! He loves me so much that it is impossible to be defined! How about this?"

"Argh! No! My heart! I can't take it!"

"Please stop!"

"No more corny love jokes! Please!"

"Just get a room already!"

"One divided by zero… Hey Lucy, what is one divided by zero?"

"Weren't you listening?! One divided by zero is impossible!"

"Aye sir!"

"See this, you pieces of shit? This is why you guys are still single! Learn a thing or two from El!"

"Damn it El, you are making us guys look bad!"

December 16, Year X784. It is the day where their guild partook in one of the most dangerous battles in their guild's history where they engaged in a life-and-death battle with Grimoire Heart.

December 16, Year X784. It is also the day where Elden made her the happiest women alive.

December 16, Year X784. It is a day that she will never forget.

The day that she became Mirajane Tyrell.

* * *

 **AN: I've no excuse for the late post, so I won't make any. I just hope this chapter lives up to your expectations.**

 **The responses from the previous two chapters were overwhelmingly supportive. I wasn't expecting such a good response, to be honest, because I didn't feel that it was that good but you guys thought otherwise. It feels me with joy that people loves TAOFT so much, but I guess with expectations comes the pressure to continue to deliver good chapters. I'm still very unsatisfied about how the fight with Hades was written, but I really could not manage to write a better version so I'm stuck with this or this story will never move on. I lost count on how many times I reread the Hades fight over and over again to the point that I no longer felt anything about it. Actually, the same goes for my other stories. I read them so many times that I kind of lost the ability to feel anything about them. It's like my senses to judge whether the chapters I wrote turns out good or bad had been dulled. I just don't feel anything. Nothing I wrote nowadays moved me anymore. If you want to know the real reason why this chapter took so long to come out, well, this is it.**

 **Once I decided to just move on with the Hades fight as it is because this is probably the best I can do about it right now, the part after that comes much easier because I already have somewhat of a brief idea on how this story will develop. It will probably take a long while again before I can get another chapter up. Not just to meet your expectations, but mine too. I really want to see this story turn into what I've envisioned it to be now that canon is officially screwed without Acnologia appearing.**

 **In any case, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Also, do stay safe. Do what you can to protect yourself from Covid-19. I'm confident that this crisis will pass soon. Until then, we just have to hang in there and look out for each other.**

 **On a side note, I should also start thinking what name I should give El's and Mira's kid lol.**


	25. Chapter 25- Sidewalk: Shield & Lightning

The first time he saw him was on a rainy afternoon in the guild hall.

From the looks of the adults in the guild, no one knew who the boy was either. The boy himself wasn't helping things, sitting at a quiet corner in the guild with his nose buried in a book. He was all alone.

Naturally, he asked his grandfather about the boy. Gramps is the Guild Master. He would know everyone in the guild.

"Hey Gramps. Who's that?"

Makarov's attention was brought away from the mug of alcohol in his hand and to his grandson.

"Oh? That's a kid I brought back to the guild a day ago. How about the two of you make friends with each other?"

Laxus beamed. There's no one his age in the guild. There's finally someone that he can play with!

With an excited nod, Laxus made his way to the black-haired kid eagerly. Laxus held out his hand to the boy, catching his attention.

"Hey, my name's Laxus. What's yours?"

The kid looked up at him and Laxus started to get a little uneasy at how the boy his age is staring up at him with those black eyes. It felt like the boy was not just merely staring at him, but something beyond that.

"I… don't know."

"Huh?"

The kid slowly put down the book in his hands, the look on his face a mixture of confusion and sadness.

"I don't know. I don't know who I am, what I did, or the name of the place where I even lived. Makarov said that I came from Middlemist village, but I…"

The boy winced and unconsciously used a hand to clutch at his head as if in pain. The look on the boy's face caused a feeling of dread to pool in Laxus's gut.

"H-Hey, it's alright! Are- GRAMPS!"

The boy had suddenly curled up on the floor, mouth opened but no sound came out of it as if screaming in silent pain. His eyes are closed in obvious pain, hands clutched at his head protectively and his fingers dug into his scalp so deeply that blood began to seep out.

Gramps was beside the boy in an instant, hands glowing with magic. That magic with such a warm presence that the entire guild had grown to love.

"Boy? Can you hear me? Calm down. You are alright. You are safe. Breathe."

The presence of Makarov's magic seemed to soothe the boy's pain a little. He managed to slowly calm down and take slow but heavy breaths.

"It's fine. You are safe. Fairy Tail won't let any harm befall you."

The boy managed to open his eyes after what seemed like a long while.

"I… I-"

"It's fine." Gramps patted the boy on the back soothingly. "There's no hurry trying to recall your lost memories. Take as long as you need."

Everyone in the guild had noticed the commotion by now. Someone among the crowd handed the boy a cup of hot chocolate.

"T-Thanks."

"Name's Wakaba." The habitual smoker grinned good-naturedly when the shaking boy received the cup with both hands. "Nice to meet you, kid."

"I'm Macao." The Fire Mage said jovially as he slung an arm around Wakaba. "You joining the guild?"

The boy without a name looked lost.

"I… don't know." He whispered as his gaze returned to the floor from where he was sitting on the floor, back against a wooden pillar. "Why am I even here? Why am I even alive? Who am I?"

"Hey now, let's not go there." Wakaba ruffled the boy's hair with a hand. "I don't know what you've been through and I don't think I can say that I understand, but take my word for it that it's always better to be alive than dead."

"Wakaba's right. Hey, how about we give you a name if you don't have one?"

"Yeah, let's do that!" Laxus shouted excitedly over the din as he put both hands on his friend's (?) shoulder.

The boy winced once more.

"I… I still want to try and remember." He said softly. When he looked up to see the concerned expressions on the faces of the entire guild looking at him, he added a near inaudible "Sorry".

"There's nothing to be sorry about, kid." Makarov said firmly and reassuringly. "Just know that if you ever need a hand or a listening ear, we are always here with you, okay?"

An awkward silence fell upon the guild hall and Laxus took this chance to reintroduce himself properly once more.

"My name's Laxus Dreyar!" He said with pride. "Let's be friends!"

"Huh?"

The boy looked genuinely confused. Laxus narrowed his eyes a little.

"You… you know what the word 'friends' mean, right?"

"Y-Yeah, I do, but-"

"No buts!" Laxus immediately rejected any possibility of them _not_ being friends. "As of now, you are my friend!"

"Okay…?"

"Come on!" Laxus whined at the unsure tone the boy used. "Is it such a bad thing to be friends with me?"

"N-No! But-"

Laxus's eyes narrowed once more.

"But what?"

"…Nothing."

That was how their very first meeting went.

* * *

"So, what kind of magic can you use? Gramps said that you can use magic."

"I don't know."

That was his new friend's default response to anything. It seems that he really had lost any and all memories he had prior to meeting Gramps. He doesn't have an identity because he had lost it. He had lost everything that could make him, him.

"You don't know? But Gramps said that you used magic."

"Yeah, I did, but I don't even know how I even managed to use it."

The two boys sat in a corner of the guild, safe from all the fighting happening in the middle of the guild hall.

"How does it look like then? Did you maybe grow bigger like how Gramps did? Or maybe you can summon paper like Pops? Or maybe simply destroy everything like Gildarts?"

Laxus got more and more excited the more he thought about the possible magic his friend could wield. It got to be interesting, right?

"It's just this…" His new friend did some vague gestures of his hand in the air in front of him, struggling to find an appropriate word. "…thing."

 _"Thing?"_

"I don't know how else to describe it." The boy sighed. "I do know that it is solid, solid enough to prevent me from getting hacked into little pieces."

"Metal-make, maybe?"

"It's not metal. It's like… solid air? I really don't know how to describe it to you."

"Then try using it! Your magic!"

Laxus tried his best to give his new friend the best encouraging smile he can manage, but from how the boy looked away awkwardly and how his body shifted uneasily, Laxus probably didn't succeed.

"I… don't know how to call upon it."

Laxus blinked. How can someone born with magic not know how to use it? It's as natural as breathing!

"Er… try closing your eyes!" Laxus tried his best to remember how his father and grandfather taught him how to use magic. He had never really needed the lessons because he could use magic so easily, so he didn't remember much of it. Magic comes easily to him, but he guessed not everybody has it as easy as him.

"Close your eyes, relax, and…and… and then feel it deep down into your core!" Laxus tried his best to recall the lessons and to not fumble with his words. That was the exact words Gramps told him, right?

The boy blinked twice, but heeded his words in the end. Laxus watched as his new friend crossed his legs, closed his eyes, and remained still.

Laxus watched in silent anticipation.

It happened.

A burst of raw magic blew him off his feet that was accompanied by a pained scream. When Laxus regains his bearings, his friend is on the floor again, writhing in pain and clutching onto his head and screaming himself hoarse.

"W-W- Gramps! GRAMPS! IT HAPPENED AGAIN!"

Laxus tried to help his friend. He tried to reach out to him, only to knock face first into something.

"OW!"

Laxus rubbed his aching forehead and stared at the space ahead. What was that?!

Something translucent shimmered into view. Something that wasn't there before. It surrounded his new friend in a dome as if trying to protect him from harm.

"We need to get him out of there!" Even the guild brawl had stopped the moment everyone heard his friend's screams. He is still screaming and writhing in pain, almost as if every time he tries to remember something a splitting headache will be there to prevent it from happening.

"Get back!" Macao stepped in and Laxus moved aside for the adults to handle the situation. A blast of Macao's unique flames impacted against the barrier looking thing but to everyone's visible surprise, it did not even leave a scratch.

"What the-"

"Step aside." Makarov finally made an appearance as the guild parted for him. With some funny swipe of his fingers, the barrier dispelled itself.

His friend is still a sweating and writhing mess when Gramps gently picked him up from the floor.

"Someone go get Porlyusica."

* * *

As they soon learnt, his friend's condition is something that not even Porlyusica can cure. She does not specialise in mental trauma.

"The boy's loss of memories may be tied to his magic." Laxus remembered what she said to his grandfather in the infirmary from where he is eavesdropping outside, ears pressed against the door.

"Whatever it is, the boy's loss of his memories is not natural. It's like his memories were intentionally wiped for whatever reasons."

Laxus's heart contorted in a mixture of rage and disbelief. Why would anyone do that to anyone else?!

"Intentionally wiped?"

"I have no answers, Makarov." Laxus can hear a sigh coming from the elderly woman. "I'm torn between saying that it is wiped, altered, or simply lost. It's too muddled for me to make any heads or tails out of it. The boy's case is a first, even for me."

"So he may never remember who he is."

"It's a possibility. In fact, I doubt his memories would ever return."

Laxus had no idea what to do. That is his friend. His first friend and yet he has no idea what to do. To not know who you are, how painful is that? Laxus cannot even begin to imagine the feelings of loss and confusion that his friend is constantly feeling.

Laxus silently walked away from the infirmary, leaving his grandfather to continue talking softly with Porlyusica.

There's nothing he can do. He claimed that he is the boy's friend, but in the end there's nothing he can do for him.

He is a failure as a friend.

It was when he was almost out of the guild's doors when an idea struck him.

He may not be able to do a thing but someone else can. The person who is almost Gildarts' equal in strength. His idol.

With a newfound determination, Laxus began to run through the streets of Magnolia as fast as he could.

He needs to find his father.

* * *

"And why would I-"

" _Please_ , Dad." Laxus pleaded, ignoring the tears in his eyes. "H-He…"

" _Fine_." His father spat. "If only to get rid of your incessant bugging so that I can finally have some peace and quiet."

His father began to walk out of their house. Night had fallen upon the city, the skies dimly lit by the streetlamps that lined the roads. Laxus quickly ran to catch up with his father, excitement showing on his face.

There's no one else in the guild right now other than the chefs and waitresses that were hired to prepare the meals for the guild and to keep it clean. They were too engrossed in their own work to pay much attention to the father and son duo.

Ivan and Laxus silently made their way to the infirmary without hassle. Nobody else but his friend is here.

His new friend is still sleeping silently.

Laxus watched as his father drew up some strange magic circle with his finger that glowed in an eerie purple. Moments later, a small beam of purple light from the magic circle shot into the forehead of his friend.

"There, that should do."

Laxus looked back up to his father.

"Dad? What did you do?"

"Gave his brain a little… _something_ to fill."

Laxus's eyes widened as he filled in the unsaid portions of his father's cryptic words.

"You… c-created…no, faked his memories?!"

Ivan snorted.

"Not _exactly_ , but merely gave his mind a probe. It may trigger some buried memories within him, but the gaps that are not filled from his own memories will be filled by… some of his own imagination. Imagination that he will think are his memories but in actuality, something his brain cooked up on its own to fill the hole in his mind in the most logical way to compensate for the memories he lost."

"D-Dad! You can't just-"

Ivan practically growled.

" _You_ were the one who bugged me to do _something_ about it, and I did it. Stop complaining before I lose my patience."

Laxus stood rooted at the spot, his hands and feet still shaking from the revelation of his father's words.

"B-But… that's not…"

"The boy's a lost cause anyway." Ivan stated without a care in the world. "This might be a better arrangement."

"B-But then, he w-won't know which memories are r-real and which are… f-fake, right?" Laxus stammered.

"That's the point." Ivan's irritation began to visibly show. "This is supposed to make him believe that he recovered his lost memories. In a way, it will. He just won't know which ones he recovered are his real memories and which are imaginations that his mind made up to fill in the missing pieces."

"If Gramps know-"

"Then for all our sakes, it's best that _nobody_ else knows." Ivan's tone gave a sense of finality that shut Laxus up. "I did as you asked, so shut your mouth. Get back home, we have training to do tomorrow."

Friends are supposed to not keep secrets from each other, but that is one secret that he still kept close to his chest and never told a single soul.

A secret whose revelation is so devastating, that Laxus dreads the day if his friend actually found out about it.

* * *

"I think… I…" The boy frowned a little as they both watched the guild brawl erupt for the fifth time that day.

It had been four days since his friend first came to Fairy Tail.

"I… I think my parents used to call me…"

Laxus awaited with eager anticipation. He won't know if the name his friend recalls is something that is from his lost memories or something that is a side effect of the spell his father casted on his friend. For all anyone might know, the recalled name may be something formed from his friend's imagination without him realising it.

The worst thing is that no one will ever know which ones are his real memories, and which ones aren't.

And it is all his fault.

He wanted to come clean with his grandfather about what he and his father did, but Laxus never did manage to work up the courage to confess.

How could he? How could he confess after he saw his friend's face lighting up with joy every single time he recalled something, even if it is something as insignificant as the fact that his father was right handed?

It would be too cruel. It would be too cruel to give his friend hope and then rob it all away from him by telling him that these memories may not even be real.

"I think my name starts with… an E?" His friend frowned again before he gave up and sighed.

"I-It's fine. Take your time to recall."

"I know that." His friend replied as he rested his tired head on the tabletop. "But I really want to at least recall my name instead of being some nameless nobody in a world that doesn't exist until your grandfather found me."

Laxus really does not know how to feel about that. He had committed something unforgivable to his friend.

"Oh, you wanted to see my magic, right? I got a grasp of it now."

Laxus perked up.

His friend held up a hand in front of him and concentrated. A few seconds later, a small wall of something translucent manifested in the space in front of them.

Laxus hesitantly used his finger to prod it. Like the first time he had bumped into it, it's solid.

"Wow. What's this?"

"I have no clue." His friend admitted. "But your grandfather and I both think that it is very likely a type of barrier."

"Barrier? Barrier magic? What's it even made of?"

His friend's gaze returned back to the floor as the barrier dissipated into thin air.

"I don't know."

"Well, let me show you mine then!" Laxus tried his best to cheer his friend up in the best way he knows how. Of course, magic! Magic always cheers people up!

Laxus fired a bolt of lightning at the tangle of limbs in the middle of the guild hall, eliciting yelps from those unfortunate enough to be in the way of Laxus's magic.

"Lightning Magic." His friend stated with certainty. "That's one overpowered magic if you know how to use it right."

"Uh huh!" Laxus nodded excitedly in agreement. His great grandfather was said to have been a Lightning Mage as well and he was crazy strong if the words of his grandfather was to go by.

"Kid! We're heading back!"

Wakaba called out to his friend as he waved him over. His friend is temporarily staying with Wakaba until a better arrangement can be worked out. For now, Wakaba is his friend's foster guardian.

"Well, see you tomorrow, Laxus."

"See you tomorrow!" Laxus waved back with enthusiasm as opposed to the dull words his friend spoke. Still, his friend smiled! He smiled!

This counts as something, right? Does this mean that he did the right thing to ask for his father's help? It did help in the end, so it must have been the right thing to do, right?

 _Right?_

* * *

It was at the end of the first week when his friend finally remembered his name.

Or at least, Laxus hoped that it really is his friend's real name and not some fictitious one his friend's mind had unconsciously cooked up to fill in the missing gaps. His friend seemed to remember most of his life that he had led until he was found by Gramps, but just couldn't seem to remember his name.

Laxus still remembered the day when his friend suddenly grabbed him by his shoulders, excitement clear in his eyes.

"L-Laxus, I-I…"

He can still remember how his friend practically vibrated in excitement.

"I remember! I remember!"

The shouts of joy were so loud that the entire guild stared at them in sudden silence. All of them waited with bated breath.

"I remember! I remember my name!" His friend couldn't seem to care about anything else right at that moment as he grabbed Laxus with strength that Laxus never knew his friend possessed.

"Elden! My name is Elden! Elden Tyrell, that's my name! My name is Elden Tyrell!"

The expression on everyone's face slowly morphed into big smiles as they suddenly crowded around the both of them.

"You remembered your name!"

"Elden? That's a nice name!"

"Good job, kid!"

"Stop calling him kid! His name is Elden!"

"LET'S PAAAAARRTTTYYYYYYYY!"

The guild partied non-stop, even if it extended deep into the night.

His friend remembered his name.

His name is Elden Tyrell.

* * *

It's been more than a month since they became friends that they started to practice their magic together. Elden had officially become a mage of their guild and had gotten his guild mark. He had stamped it on his right shoulder and chose it to be of a shade of dark blue.

Elden had been under Wakaba's tutelage up till now and Laxus was eager to see how much his friend had improved. Gildarts happened to be around, so they roped him in since Gramps had made it very clear that adult supervision is needed whenever they want to practise their magic on their own.

"Come on, Laxus, that all you can do? You can do better than this. Or are you getting _tired_ already?"

Laxus gritted his teeth as the two of them sparred in the clearing. That Barrier Magic is _annoying_ as hell.

"Alright kiddos, timeout."

Gildarts forcefully separated the both of them as they both heaved for air.

"What the hell are your barriers made of?!" Laxus exclaimed as the two of them lay with their backs on the ground, trying to catch their breath. "They just **_won't_** break!"

"That's the whole point of having barriers." Elden snarked back. "Why would you need barriers that break easily?"

He had a point there.

"That's some unique magic you have." Gildarts mused as he sat beside them on the ground. "Not many mages like to use Support type of magic even if they can use them and defensive type of Support magic are even less common. Not many will want to use such magic since that means that they wouldn't be able to attack at all, making them useless in a solo fight."

Elden huffed as he crossed his arms.

"That's because they are idiots that lack imagination. It's not _what_ type of magic you have, but _how_ you use magic. Barrier-Make is absolutely **_broken_**. Wouldn't trade it for anything in the world."

Laxus scoffed.

"Yeah, right. All you did was to be a sitting duck."

"For now. I already have many ideas on how to properly use defensive magic for offense. If it's a Maker type of magic, then I can create _anything_. As long as it has a form, I can create it."

"You know, there's such a thing called confidence, and then there's arrogance." Laxus pointed out immediately. "You did nothing the whole time but stand there and defend against my attacks. Your Barrier magic made nothing but rectangles and circles."

"Just rectangles and circles? That's more than enough to knock you down. You want a go Sparky?"

"You are _on_ , Bookworm."

"Now, now, let's not-"

Gildarts words when unheard as the two boys immediately clashed with their magic.

"Hah! So much about the big talk! You can't even attack!"

Streaks of lightning attacked Elden relentlessly, who only conjured a barrier to protect him from harm.

"Watch your words, Lightbulb. Here I come!"

Laxus was in for a surprise when Elden placed a palm on the rectangular barrier in front of him, and he _pushed_.

The wall of barrier came crashing into Laxus as Elden ran and pushed it into his direction. Laxus felt as if he got steamrolled by a train.

Laxus groaned and sat up from the ground, still feeling a little groggy. That _hurts_.

"It's not just talk if I can really do it. Right, Yellow?"

Laxus's right eye twitched.

"Fine. You win this one."

That didn't stop him from grumbling the entire day about how absurdly _hard_ those blasted barriers are.

* * *

Elden is a madman.

"How… How are you still going?"

It's been eight hours. _Eight_ hours since they started training.

"Some… Someone's getting _tired_ , I see."

Laxus glared at Elden as he shakily stood back up on his feet. Even when they are both a panting mess, Laxus wouldn't be bested by his best friend so easily.

Elden held out a shaky arm in front of him and concentrated.

"Barrier-Make: Cone!"

A large cone manifested in front of him and Laxus watched as his friend visibly concentrated. Slowly, but surely, the cone started to move and point its tip at a large boulder ahead. It then began to spin along its horizontal axis like a drill.

"Go!"

The spinning drill was launched and Laxus watched in awe as the drill obliterated the debris in front of them.

Isn't Barrier-Make magic a Support type magic? How can it cause so much destruction?!

" _Perfect_." Elden had a predatory grin on his face that usually couldn't be found there. "My hypothesis was correct."

"You were _experimenting_?"

"Duh."

Elden gave a shrug and Laxus is starting to notice that this shrug is quickly becoming his friend's trademark gesture.

"My magic is so unique that I have no idea what it can do, Laxus. I need to know the possibilities of my magic. How far can I manifest my barriers away from me? Can I move them remotely? How big and how small can I create them? How hard can I make them? Can they do anything more than simple blocking? My barriers can appear as translucent or opaque, so can I make them invisible? If so, can my barriers manipulate the properties of light? Can it-"

Laxus's jaws dropped as his best friend went on and on and on about the list of things he needed to find out about his magic. All of the training, all _eight_ hours of training he did today was _just_ to simply test whether he can _move_ his barriers?

"-and if all of these holds true, I can start to create even bigger things. I can create a freaking titan. An avatar bigger than the size of the cathedral to do my bidding. Can you believe it, Laxus? **Imagine** , a giant warrior made of my barriers that is of the same size as Master in his full Titan form. I'm going to be _unstoppable_ -"

His friend's a _madman_. What's dangerous is not his magic, but rather what he can _visualise_ he can do with his magic. Who the hell makes giant warriors with barriers? HOW is Elden even going to do it in the first place?

"-and I can already see it! My ultimate finishing move! It- Laxus? You still there?"

"Yes, I am." Laxus snapped back. "What now?"

"Great! Help me test something out!"

Laxus sighed, but conceded anyway.

"What do you want now?"

Elden made a rectangular wall of barrier the size of a door.

"Let's try combining our magic, I just want to see if my barriers can conduct electricity."

Laxus's confusion must be clear on his face for Elden immediately explained his rationale.

"If we can do this, it means we can combine our magic! My barriers can give form to whatever we desire to manifest, your lightning can provide the power needed! Can you imagine it? Between my defence and your offense, my form and your power, we will be unstoppable!"

Laxus can slowly feel a smile forming on his face upon the realisation.

The both of them got severely reprimanded by Gramps after that for training until they couldn't get out of bed for the next two days, but it was worth it.

Elden's crazy idea worked. Their magic could mesh with each other. It's not a Unison Raid that they achieved, far from it, but their newfound discovery just opened up a whole new world for them to discover.

If they worked hard enough, their dream of becoming an unstoppable duo can become a reality.

* * *

If Laxus had to list three things Elden did that occupy most of his time, it would be training, reading, and _sleeping_.

Yes, his new friend is a lazyass that couldn't be bothered to lift a finger if his magic can help him with moving around.

Need to move from Point A to Point B? He moves around using his barrier like a magic carpet. Need to retrieve something that is out of his reach? His barriers will somehow bring it within reach for him. Need to sweep the dust off the floor? His barrier can do it by gently moving against the floor like a broom. Heck, it's even more efficient than a broom.

And he sleeps, _a lot_ , for reasons that eluded even Laxus.

"Oi, wake up."

"Leave me alone, Sparky. I'm beat." Elden groaned as he tossed about on the reclining chair he is lying on.

Laxus zapped him with a voltage of electricity. This is way faster.

"You slept for the _entire_ day already. Wake up, sleepyhead! It's about time we start going on missi-"

And he received a wall of barrier to his face, courtesy of Elden.

"That's it, Sparky! You are going down for waking me up from my beauty sleep!"

Another thing Laxus quickly learnt was that Elden gets extremely grumpy if he is woken from his nap. Waking Elden up prematurely from his nap is one sure way to piss him off.

Still, Laxus himself is also itching for a fight. He charged himself up with lightning as it crackled and roared to life.

"Bring it, lazyass!"

A huge cube of barrier fell from above that Laxus dodged. The nearby bystanders weren't so lucky.

"Damn it Elden! Watch where you are throwing those things!"

"Raging Bolt!"

Elden blocked that as expected. It takes more than a Raging Bolt to bring Elden down.

"Alright, kids, stop-"

 **"OUT OF THE WAY!"**

Macao was sent flying by a punch each from the both of them.

The two of them started a brawl in the guild hall. Anyone who tried to stop them were swiftly taken out. They are unstoppable.

Numerous chunks of rectangular blocks smashed down from above and it is taking Laxus everything he has to even dodge it. He knew from first-hand experience how much it hurts to get hit by one of those things.

"Cut it out!"

Gildarts appeared between them without warning before smashing the both of them into the floor.

"O-Ow…"

"Alright! If you brats have so much energy to spare, then more training for the both of you!"

Laxus groaned. Not again.

"Sure, why not?"

Of course, the madman which is his best friend is actually excited at the prospect of _more_ training under _Gildarts_.

Joy.

* * *

"M-My name's Cana… Nice to meet you…"

"Uh… N-Name's Elden…"

Laxus resisted the urge to sigh out loud. It's been two years since Elden joined the guild but some things still didn't change. What didn't change, you ask?

Elden's social awkwardness.

Elden can converse properly with him since they are best friends, but for anyone that is not him or Gramps or Gildarts or Wakaba?

Elden is a stuttering mess that has no idea how to talk to others, period.

The new girl called Cana is the third from their generation to join. She's a shy thing and it does not help that Elden is equally socially awkward.

"So… uh… nice weather, huh? Haha…"

Laxus facepalmed. Way to go, Elden.

"We are wasting time. Let's go, El. We have a mission to do."

Laxus saved them all from further embarrassment by physically dragging Elden out of the guild. He is a lot stronger now since his father had implanted a lacrima in him, a lacrima that gave him an immense boost in power and made him healthy. He is no longer the sickly child that he once was.

Elden was both horrified and worried when he first saw the new scar on his face in the shape of a lightning bolt, a result of the implantation process. Gramps had been furious at his father when he first learnt of it but no one could argue with the results. It is a fact that Laxus now has a much healthier and stronger body.

"That wasn't nice, Sparky. I was trying to be nice and leave a-"

"Good impression?"

Elden scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

"Uh… in hindsight, maybe it was not _that_ good of an impression."

"The only impression you leave on people is that you are _lazy_."

The edge of Elden's lips visibly twitched in irritation at that remark. Laxus counted that as a win.

The two of them went on many missions together as a duo. Despite their young age, they are already starting to make a name for themselves. Many of their guild members are already starting to run bets on whether they could become S Class mages in the future.

"Let me handle the vulcans later, I have a new idea that I have been dying to test out."

Laxus opened his eyes from where he was sitting beside Elden on the train, listening to the music his headphones are blasting.

"What kind of crazy idea this time?"

Elden smirked.

"You will see."

That was the first time that Laxus truly caught a glimpse of what Elden can achieve when he put his mind into it. The new spell that his friend had named as 'Shinra Tensei' obliterated an entire section of the forest, a feat that even he was unable to achieve at that point in time.

It is Elden's answer on how to use his magic to both attack and defend at the same time. The invention of the Shinra Tensei was the start of Elden's rise to power as a mage.

So much for _Support-Defensive_ magic. Elden's Barrier magic can cause so much destruction that it isn't even remotely funny.

"Here. This is for you."

It was Christmas. They both exchanged presents as per usual.

"Open it up, you will love it."

Laxus really loved it. He still kept it to this day.

It is a large, brown coat with light brown fur trimming around the neck and the sleeves' edges. Laxus draped it over his shoulders like a cape and decided that he really loved this look. He ended up buying many similar coats in the future, although he only wore the original one that Elden had given him when he is not on missions because he didn't want to damage it. The coat would later be a part of his usual attire that he still wore to this day when he eventually became the Fourth Guild Master of Fairy Tail.

Funnily enough, he had gotten Elden something similar.

"A jacket?"

"Yeah, I chose dark blue because that's your favourite colour. Funny how we both thought of the same thing."

Elden looked at the jacket in his hands, then back up at him before they both laughed together.

"How do I look?"

Elden had immediately worn the jacket. It fit him perfectly. It would also be a part of his usual attire to this day although Mirajane had to often patch up the holes in the jacket because it kept getting damaged from the number of missions Elden went on.

"Perfect." Laxus said with a grin. "Now that we have matching attires, we can truly call ourselves a duo."

Elden said nothing, but the smirk and the mirth in his eyes told Laxus everything he needs to know.

They will both climb their way to the top and stand at the very pinnacle of magic, like they had both promised each other.

They will be the strongest.

* * *

He wasn't expecting to form a team so soon.

The Thunder God Tribe.

The name… it sounded nice.

His team. _Their_ team.

They are the Thunder God Tribe.

He is a step closer to reaching his dream, his dream of becoming the next Guild Master of Fairy Tail. Elden had promised to be his Ace. Laxus will be the sword of the guild, Elden will be the shield of the guild. Together, they will be unstoppable. They will be so strong that none can stand in their way.

"Break time's over! Saddle up, boys and girls!"

"E-Elden-sama, we-"

Laxus had gone through some pretty crazy stuff thanks to his father's training methods. Even then, Laxus swore that even his father had _nothing_ when compared to Elden.

If you are too slow, you get smashed. If your spells are too weak to block his attacks, you get smashed. Even if you are on the floor, you get smashed.

And Laxus can testify that getting smashed by Elden's barriers is really, really painful. He would know. No one in the guild got smashed by Elden's barriers as frequently as him.

For some reason, Laxus cannot help but let a vindictive smile cross his face as he watched his future Ace toy around with the remaining members of their team. Nothing helps people to bond together faster than shared pain.

Yes, he would not suffer alone. Someone else other than him needs to feel the pain of getting hit by one of Elden's barriers.

They got even stronger as a duo over the years. Elden is on track to perfecting that crazy spell, the Susanoo, that stupid avatar that Elden claims will be bigger than the Kardia Cathedral. Not only that, the both of them achieved Unison Raid for the first time. It was what saved Freed, Bickslow, and Evergreen from a life of slavery.

No matter how tired Elden seemed to be, he can always keep pushing himself forward. He never stops. He just, keeps, _going_ no matter what you try to do to put him down.

He took pride in being a shield. He took pride in having the best defensive capabilities in the entire guild. He took pride in being incapable of getting put down by anything thrown his way. To him, that is who he is, his identity. He is an unbreakable shield.

It was because of Elden's promise to him that Elden chose to learn Fairy Sphere, a spell whose only purpose is to protect. They both hid the fact from Gramps that they literally stole the knowledge of how to use two of the three Great Fairy Magics from the guild's library. Gramps will be more than just furious if he ever learnt about that.

But they are a step closer to reaching their dream. Not only to be the Guild Master, not only to be the Ace.

They want to be the strongest duo.

* * *

Elden's barriers had gotten annoyingly versatile. Laxus blamed Erza's recent arrival for that.

Elden had another of his crazy inspiration the moment he saw Erza's magic for the first time, something about he should have thought of the idea of recreating something similar to the 'Gates of Baby-something'. Whatever that baby-something is.

The basic idea is that Elden could possibly create an endless supply of weapons with his barriers. With the near indestructible properties of his barriers, whatever weapons he made will also be indestructible.

Laxus had no problems with that. The only problem he had was that he had effectively become Elden's guinea pig for his new idea, _again_.

The things he does for his best friend.

From where Elden learnt how to expertly wield the various types of weaponry, Laxus had no idea. All he knew was that Elden just got harder to beat even if they are equal in strength.

Even after sparring with his best friend to improve his proficiency in close combat, his friend still wouldn't stop and rest.

"The ultimate finisher?"

"A Unison Raid." Elden nodded as the five of them rested in the clearing that is their usual training spot. "I told you many times before, right? Theoretically, my barriers can create anything as long as the object in question has a form. Your only job is to be a glorified battery to power it."

" _Battery_? That's it, lazyass. You are going down later."

"It will be big, Laxus." Elden ignored everything else as his imagination began to run wild again. It is one of those instances where Elden will have one of those crazy moments on how to create a crazy spell that can do the unthinkable.

Problem is, Elden always made the unthinkable a reality.

"How big?"

Laxus had learnt by now that Elden will definitely find some way to make this new crazy spell possible.

"Bigger than a complete Susanoo."

" _Complete_ Susanoo? You are telling me that the one you have right now _isn't_ a complete version?!"

"Don't get too worked up about the details." Elden waved it off casually with a hand. "How much damage can your Breakdown Fist do?"

Laxus scoffed.

"Plenty to go around."

"What if you have a thousand fists, each the size of a giant's?"

It's not just him. The rest of the team had that incredulous look on their faces too.

"A thousand-armed buddha, Laxus. That will be my final spell." Elden grinned back up at them. "It won't be easy. I won't be able to even start forming something as complex as that for a good many years, maybe even for the next decade, but I know I will get there. You can charge it up with your Lightning Dragon Slayer Magic. With something the size bigger than a complete Susanoo, something with a thousand arms that allows you to punch something one thousand times and with **_you_** powering it with lightning, lightning imbued with Dragon Slayer magic, we might be able to even take on a freaking dragon in theory. Even Natsu's Dragon Slayer techniques will have nothing on this."

Laxus blurted out the first thing on his mind.

"You are fucking insane."

"I have to be to get to where I am now."

"Elden-sama, what would you name the spell?"

"True Several Thousand Hands."

"That sounds lame." Evergreen said, her distaste in Elden's naming sense clear in her voice.

"I agree with Ever, El." Bickslow added.

Elden only clicked his tongue in annoyance.

"I don't care."

* * *

"Mission accomplished!"

The five of them bumped fists as per their team tradition upon another successful completion of their mission.

Well, successful as far as it goes for Fairy Tail mages. They had to take a pay cut for the collateral damage they accidentally caused, but eh, semantics.

They are the strongest team in Fairy Tail, that's what matters.

They headed to their favourite eatery the moment they returned to Magnolia, the one that they always been to after the end of their missions. He looks forward to drinking his favourite orange juice, even if the rest of his team had done all they could to wean him off it and never succeeded.

They are a well-balanced team. As the leader, he has the power to blitz through their enemies. Freed, Bickslow, and Ever are also plenty strong in the power department and their respective magic brings a lot of versatility to the team. With Elden around, none of them suffered even a scratch on their missions.

In fact, people had started to call Elden The Aegis of Fairy Tail simply because he is the best shield there is in Fiore.

Monster extermination, stealth, taking out dark guilds. It doesn't matter what kind of missions they are on; they maintained a 100% successful mission completion rate ever since their team became official.

They are the strongest.

* * *

The first turning point in his life was when his father was excommunicated from the guild.

He doesn't know why, he doesn't understand why. All he has in his head are 'whys' and nobody is willing to explain to him why.

He begged his father to not go. He begged his grandfather to tell him the truth. None of them listened and he got increasingly angry and frustrated at how he is being brushed off like that.

It was also the time where people started to doubt his skills as a mage, saying that he only became this famous because he is Makarov's grandson. Elden told him not to listen to these people because they are just jealous of his rise to power, the rise he made from his own effort and hard work. Elden told him to just do what he is best at and continue to strive to be the strongest. The idiots will naturally stop talking when he can prove that he is the indisputable number one and that his grandfather had nothing to do with it.

He had listened to the advice of his best friend. It had worked for a while, but the combination of the stress of being Makarov's grandson and his father's departure still got to him. He tried to talk to his grandfather, knowing he would understand, only to find that his grandfather doesn't seem to understand a single thing he is going through. He got angry, he got mad. He lashed out, they argued.

He got very bitter. Nobody seems to understand him, his desire to prove himself as a capable mage. Not just capable, but the strongest mage in not only Fairy Tail, but in the whole of Fiore.

From then on, his relationship with his grandfather quickly soured. Why talk to him when he couldn't understand? He worked harder than ever, trained himself harder than ever. Elden obliged to each and every of his demands and trained with him until they can no longer move. Only Elden could understand him and only he would provide a listening ear when he needs one. Elden had always been good at listening even if he always acted like he never listened.

Elden advised him to talk to his grandfather again and work things out. He said that he is lucky to even have a grandfather. Unlike him, who doesn't even have a family and doesn't really recall who they really are.

Those sincere words and those sad eyes convinced Laxus to try one more time. Just one more time to talk to his grandfather.

He found his grandfather and they had a talk.

It ended up being the biggest argument the two of them ever had. His grandfather still doesn't understand why he is eager to prove himself, still doesn't understand the stress from being Makarov's grandson, still doesn't understand that he **_really_** doesn't like having his abilities doubted simply because he is the grandson of a Wizard Saint. His grandfather still doesn't understand that above all, he just wants to be acknowledged. He wants to be a mage stronger than what his grandfather can be and make him proud, make Fairy Tail proud, but only if he does so through his own strength, not because he had help because he is _Makarov's grandson_.

He hates those two words with passion. _Makarov's grandson._

So, he stormed out of the guild and demolished the unlucky training field that had caught his eye. His Thunder God Tribe stood by him, their leader.

It was also at that moment that Laxus made a vow.

To prove his grandfather wrong, he would make Fairy Tail the strongest guild in Fiore, the strongest guild in the whole world. If his grandfather cannot understand him and his desire to become stronger through his own power, then he would force him to understand.

Using any means necessary.

To force his grandfather to acknowledge him and to admit that he was wrong and his grandson is right, the best wake up call would be to usurp the position of Guild Master of Fairy Tail and shape the guild in his image. His Fairy Tail will be the strongest guild in the world, consisting of only the strongest mages. The weak will be weeded out. And when he finally proves to his grandfather that he is right through making Fairy Tail the strongest guild using his methods, then he will understand and accept his view.

He knows he can do it because he has the Thunder God Tribe by his side, because he has his best friend by his side.

That's why it came as such a shock when Elden tried to persuade him otherwise. Why? Why is it that even his best friend cannot understand where he's coming from?

That was his breaking point.

They had a big fight as they screamed at each other, the other members of their team watching by the side in fear and not knowing what to do. He threw the first punch packed with his full power and was shocked when Elden didn't even block it. He knew Elden could have blocked it. He had pulled his punch back a little at the last second because he is his best friend. Elden could have blocked it, he should have blocked it.

So why didn't he block it?

Elden suffered some serious injuries. He actually coughed up quite a bit of blood and suffered several broken ribs. Porlyusica had healed him quickly enough and the Thunder God Tribe all visited him at Porlyusica's place, him included, when she had given them the green light.

He apologised. Elden accepted his apology with a kind smile on his face like he always does. They actually held a normal conversation for a while until that topic was brought up again.

His friend was firm on not supporting his plan because he feels that it goes against what a guild really is. He doesn't want to go against Fairy Tail, the guild which had given him an identity when he had none. Laxus could understand but he still cannot help but be furious that his best friend is also like his grandfather.

It's like nobody can understand him anymore.

He let his anger get the better of him. He threw him a plethora of unkind words that he would never usually say, especially so to his best friend but he had really lost it in the heat of the moment. Throughout it all, Elden bore it with a sad look on his face and never said a word.

"If you don't want to help me, then get the fuck out of my way! Get lost! If you don't want to help me, FINE! I don't need you! I only need my Thunder God Tribe!"

He regretted his words the moment he said it out loud but he was too prideful back then to admit that he was wrong. It was one of the biggest mistakes he could have ever made.

He and his fucking pride.

Elden looked at him. His face betrayed nothing but his eyes did.

Slowly, Elden moved to get out of bed despite his injuries, despite how Freed, Ever, and Bickslow are persuading him that he is in no condition to move around. Elden slowly limped until he stood in front of him even if it is obvious to all of them that he is in pain just by trying to stand.

"Is… that really what you truly feel?"

No. It's not. He wants him back, his best friend.

But his fucking pride said otherwise and he let his pride got the better of him.

"Yes."

"I see." Elden whispered softly, his gaze slowly going back to look at the floor. "I see."

Wait, maybe Elden is going to change his mind and support him instead?

"I understand now, that I'm not going to be the one who can bring you back. One day, somebody will, but that person won't be me. Where I failed, whoever that person may be will succeed. I know you mean well, Laxus, you always have the guild's best interest in mind but what you wanted for the guild is not what the guild needs. Your path is one of self-destruction. I can only hope that you will still have the chance to turn around when we can finally understand each other."

Laxus could remember that he just stood there rooted in shock.

"EL!" He can remember Freed exclaiming in worry when they all heard this, trying their best not to believe that what is to come is going to be real. Elden slowly limped to grab the dark blue jacket that he had gotten him for Christmas before making his way out of the door.

"From today onwards." Laxus couldn't see it, but his nose can smell the salty tinge of tears coming from Elden's direction. "I… I will n-no longer be a part of the T-Thunder God Tribe. I-I c-cannot go against Fairy Tail, Laxus. I… I really can't, even if it is for you. They mean the world to me, you know this."

"So you are just gonna leave like a fucking coward?" He seethed, fists clenched, despite how much he is hurting on the inside as well. He knows just how much the Thunder God Tribe, _their_ Thunder God Tribe, means to Elden. It is part of the identity that Elden had built for himself, just as he had built an identity for himself as The Aegis of Fairy Tail. The Thunder God Tribe is precious to Elden because he is a part of it. It is what makes him Elden Tyrell.

He's gonna leave, just like that? He's going to give it all up, just like that?

He's going to discard his identity as Elden Tyrell of the Thunder God Tribe, _just like that?_

"... Yes."

"THEN LEAVE!" He screamed. "LEAVE! YOU FUCKING TRAITOR! I… I DON'T NEED YOU! **WE** DON'T NEED YOU! LEAVE AND NEVER APPEAR BEFORE ME AGAIN! LEAVE YOU FUCKING COWARD! BEGONE! I WILL BUILD MY OWN FAIRY TAIL WITHOUT YOUR FUCKING HELP! I DON'T NEED YOU AS MY ACE! I WILL BE THE **_STRONGEST!_** I WILL PROVE YOU AND GRAMPS WRONG! MY FAIRY TAIL WILL BE THE **_STRONGEST_** GUILD THERE EVER WILL BE!"

"I wish you all the best."

Laxus remembered that Elden left, just like that.

Elden left before he could stop his best friend from leaving his side.

He and his fucking pride.

* * *

The entire guild knew about the fallout they had by the time the next day came around. It's hard not to, what with Elden not sitting with them in the guild hall and all. It's obvious something had happened between them. Many brushed it aside and laughed it off as a little spat between nakama, they didn't laugh when they realised that Elden really is not part of the Thunder God Tribe anymore.

Elden really took his words literally. He really never appeared before him again unless he could not help it. If the Thunder God Tribe is out on missions, he will be in the guild. If the Thunder God Tribe is in the guild, he will be out on missions that lasts anywhere from weeks to months.

They never had a chance to reconcile.

Almost everybody had tried to get them to make up with each other, including his grandfather, but both him and his best friend can be really stubborn at the worst of times. His grandfather kept dropping hints about how worried he was about Elden because he was quickly regressing back to the state when he first arrived in the guild. He doesn't talk. He doesn't socialise anymore. The members of the guild which he used to talk to, he didn't talk to them anymore. Not even Wakaba could get Elden to open up. Everybody is worried about him but yet there's nothing they can do. Elden is hardly in the guild anymore. He just goes on missions, come back, go to the job request board, takes a few more missions that will bring him out of the guild for a long time, and the cycle will repeat.

Deep down, Laxus knows that he is worried about Elden. As his best friend Laxus had long since figured out the true weakness of Elden's impenetrable Barrier Magic. The longer and more he uses it, the faster he succumbs to his exhaustion. Going on so many high level quests on his own is a stupidly dangerous thing to do with such an innate weakness found in his magic. The chance of him never returning back to the guild had never been higher.

But his stupid fucking pride continues to get in his way.

He and his Thunder God Tribe also ended up doing what Elden did. They keep going on dangerous missions one after the other without rest. But together they are four people while Elden was alone.

Elden is alone once more while he had the Thunder God Tribe by his side.

The S Class Trials came around, he made S Class before Elden. Elden simply mumbled a 'Congratulations' before disappearing. His fucking pride held him back from making use of that opportunity to reconcile with him. Another chance lost.

He tried again, this time, right after the S Class group got back to the guild from the exam venue. He tried to talk to Elden again, only for them to have an argument even more violent than the previous one because of their differing views. Laxus soon learnt not to bring that topic up and not to say anything because anything they spoke to each other that is more than a simple greeting of hello and goodbye will quickly turn into a shouting match that either Gildarts or his grandfather have to personally intervene.

Like Elden said, they could no longer understand each other.

Elden continues to act like the worst combination of a madman and a recluse. He only trains and goes on missions. His fame started to spread across Fiore like wildfire because of how active he is in his job. It was then that the moniker of The Aegis of Fairy Tail really started to become known in every town and village of Fiore. Tales of his exploits often spoke about him casually taking on blows that would kill any other mortal man but Elden will walk out of it without a single scratch.

The guild is happy for him in his rise to fame, but also got a lot more worried with how anti-social and cold he is starting to be. Not even the idiot Natsu can get to him. Not even Cana who knows them the longest. Not even Levy who shares the same love for books as he did.

Elden has nobody. He is still alone.

Meanwhile, the Thunder God Tribe became a household name as well. Like The Aegis of Fairy Tail, people often talk about how powerful his Thunder God Tribe is and how strong Fairy Tail is becoming.

His Thunder God Tribe, not _their_ Thunder God Tribe. For some reason, Laxus felt a void that he cannot fill when people refer to the Thunder God Tribe as his and not theirs.

His best friend, his future Ace, was supposed to be a part of it as well.

His stupid fucking pride.

He still kept tabs on his best friend through his grandfather, who kept hinting that _somebody_ should go and have a proper talk with Elden and keep telling him the places that Elden's current missions bring him to. Of course, being that stubborn fool back then, he didn't listen.

He and his stupid fucking pride.

It was on a particular rainy day when things started to change. He was resting on the second floor of the guild, a place reserved only for S Class mages. A perfect place where he and Elden will never bump into each other because Elden was not an S Class mage yet. That would change soon. He was confident that Elden would become S Class in the next S Class Trial. There is no fucking competition now that Laxus Dreyar is one. They had always been each other's biggest competitors, constantly pushing each other to be better, stronger, to be each other's equal.

They were the sword and shield duo. The strongest duo in Fairy Tail. The strongest team in Fairy Tail. Individually, they are powerful. Together, they were unstoppable.

He likes his spot on the second floor because it is where he can see the entire of the first floor of the guild from where he is on top without anybody spotting him. He spotted Elden coming through the guild's doors, finally returning after a particularly long solo mission. It must have been difficult. The other idiots in the guild may not have spotted it, but he can. Elden is obviously exhausted and is about to drop dead. You can see it in his eyes.

It was also at this time that a new batch of job requests were being posted on the job request board on the first floor. Elden got himself a drink from the bar as he stood in front of the board, his eyes slowly reading through the quests available. He probably wanted to just snatch up on the good quests before anybody else could do so, sleep for an entire day, and then get back to work with the new quests in hand when he recovered his energy. It is his modus operandi by now.

That's why everybody who were in the guild back then were startled when he suddenly snatched a particular job request from the board, just a single one instead of the usual handful, before bolting out of the door. He didn't even bother to set down his mug properly like he usually does and let the mug drop onto the floor and the contents spill all over messily. He didn't even bother to register with his grandfather that he had taken up the job. That is not standard protocol and is a violation of the guild's rules.

Obviously, people were concerned by that sudden unexplainable behaviour. The guild kept a log of the copies of the job requests that came in and out of the guild and they quickly narrowed down just which job request had gotten Elden acting like that. It was the only thing the entire guild talked about for the rest of the day because something must be really _wrong_ for Elden to act like that.

He can tell that even his Thunder God Tribe was worried. They were so close to just running after Elden to help him in whatever he might need them to help in because that was not an expression usually seen on Elden's face.

They found out later that the job request was a simple escort mission. Ranked at C at the most. The pay was honestly not appealing at all. The location was so out of the way that nobody would want to pick it. The only thing that stood out was the big fat bold word on the job request.

 **URGENT**

Somebody posted an urgent job request to their guild to ask for help. They need someone to escort them out of their village and to Magnolia because the journey here is undoubtedly dangerous for any ordinary civilian. The client wanted to get out of the village ASAP because they cannot stay in the village any longer. If you read in between the lines, it is like the client is fearing for her and her families' lives.

It was then that Laxus realised that his best friend is still the kind boy that he befriended many years ago. It was him that turned his best friend into that cold and anti-social person today. His friend hid his kind nature beneath a mask of uncaring aloofness, no longer wanting to associate himself with anybody else after he removed a big part of his identity, Elden of the Thunder God Tribe.

They had both changed and at the same time, never changed.

He didn't know it back then, but that client would later be a member of Fairy Tail.

Her name is Mirajane Strauss.

* * *

When Elden finally returned days later, he had a few more companions.

Laxus didn't know what he was thinking. Scratch that, he **_wasn't_** thinking. All he knew was that his body was on autopilot when he finally spotted his best friend walking through the doors of the guild, another mission successfully completed.

He would never admit that during the entire time Elden was missing, he came to the guild everyday to wait for him to return. He was here everyday from dawn to dusk because he was worried that Elden had finally messed up for taking another mission when he was in such an exhausted state. If his grandfather was to organise a party to search for Elden, he and his Thunder God Tribe will be the first to go, screw his fucking pride.

But Elden had returned. Exhausted, yes, but he returned and completed the mission successfully like he always did.

Three people returned with him. A girl around their age who is wrapped in a dark cloak from top to toe and only revealing her face and a little of her long white hair, a dark-skinned boy with white hair, and a little girl with white hair. Obviously siblings from the looks of it.

People didn't seem to notice Elden's return, but he did. He smelt his scent the moment Elden took the first step into Magnolia. By the time he was finally aware that his body was actually walking towards his best friend it was a little too late. They were already standing across each other face-to-face.

Fuck. What should he say?

"El." He greeted with his usual poker face. He really doesn't know what to say beyond that.

"Laxus."

It was the first time in a long while he heard Elden's voice again, the first time in a long while they actually greeted each other properly. It seems like they are off to a good start. Maybe there is a chance that they can go back to old times like before. Elden felt a little different this time. Laxus could not put a finger on it but he definitely felt different.

Laxus' gaze travelled back to the siblings. He can sense a great amount of magic emitting from the oldest girl, especially so from her right arm. It's like the bulk of her magic is being concentrated there and she doesn't know how to turn it off. Transformation type magic, perhaps? It felt like it.

His gaze must have felt like it was hostile for the cloaked girl instinctively put herself in front of her siblings in a protective manner even though she obviously fears him.

"Who are they."

"My clients. If all goes well, maybe they would be our nakama as well."

 _Nakama?_

His gaze went back to the three siblings. It was then he saw it, the look in her eyes. The look in the eyes of the girl wearing that dark cloak.

The look of somebody who doesn't know who they are.

It was then it hit him harder than a fucking train. Elden must have seen a little of himself in that girl in the cloak. She has the same look he had, the look of not knowing who they are. He wants to help her because he knows better than anyone the feeling of being a literal nobody.

Elden, he… He is still helping people regardless of whether he is a part of the Thunder God Tribe or not. Just like how they both had helped Freed, Ever, and Bickslow free themselves from a life of slavery, Elden is now helping the siblings standing behind him. Laxus can see the fierce protectiveness in his eyes towards the three siblings behind him despite the obvious fatigue. God knows how much he had actually slept. Elden doesn't need him anymore, doesn't need the Thunder God Tribe anymore, because he can survive just well on his own.

He doesn't need him anymore, his best friend.

And that fucking _stung_ like a bitch.

He is sure his face contorted into an ugly scowl at the thought. His pride got the better of him once again.

"Them?" He pointed a finger at the youngest sibling. "That weak little-"

"Laxus. Get out of my way. My client wants to meet Master Makarov."

Elden's tone was one of finality and hostility. For once, he is not budging. Elden had always been the one that was too considerate of others' feelings, always the one making the concessions between the two of them because he views him as his best friend and brother. This time, he stood his ground because he wanted to protect the siblings. He chose them over him. He chose strangers over him.

It stung even more.

He released his magic out of unjust anger. So did Elden. From the difference in magical density released Laxus could tell that Elden was really close to exhausting himself and that if a fight between them breaks out, there might be irreversible consequences.

But they are both too stubborn. Always had been too stubborn.

 **"Laxus. El."**

His grandfather saved the day when he appeared and they both reined their magic back in. The siblings have dropped onto their knees from the suffocating magical pressure they both released. Good, let them know their place in the pecking order. Fairy Tail doesn't need _weaklings_.

Elden doesn't need weaklings like that weighing him down. He could be so much more. He was the one who promised to be his Ace when he became the Guild Master.

Laxus stormed past his best friend in silent fury, their shoulders brushing past each other in a rough manner. He casted the siblings one last glare before he left.

Elden doesn't need these _weaklings_. His best friend doesn't need anyone else other than him and their Thunder God Tribe.

It was only when he finally cooled his head that he realised that his stupid fucking pride had gotten the better of him once more.

* * *

He fucking hates Mirajane but at the same time was fucking glad that she came to Fairy Tail.

Her presence is definitely good for Elden. It takes a damn while, but he is slowly opening himself up once more because of her. At the same time, he is angry that she can easily do what he cannot, to be Elden's best friend.

Yes, that's right. Elden's best friend is no longer him, it is that fucking demon Mirajane.

He did manage to find an opportunity to sow some seeds of doubt in Mirajane when Elden left to complete another mission, because the Thunder God Tribe was in town. It wasn't of much use though. Mirajane's friendship with El only got stronger.

Time passed in a blur. Elden became S Class, not like Laxus ever doubted him but it finally became official. They are both S Class. Elden made good on his crazy promise and actually created an avatar out of his barriers that is bigger than the Kardia Cathedral. He showed the fruits of his training during his S Class Trial. It was fucking crazy and awesome at the same time. He was there to see it. Even Gildarts have nothing but praise for Elden.

More and more people from their generation then started to be S Class. Erza, even Mirajane, Mystogan. Fairy Tail is getting stronger and stronger but it is still not strong enough in his opinion. Fairy Tail can be _even_ stronger.

Elden also adopted a sibling during this period, a sibling he raised together with Mirajane. If Mirajane was the one who got Elden to finally open up Yukino was the one who helped him connect with the rest of the guild. Yukino's presence is good for Elden, that is for sure. Elden saved her when he found her all alone in some unnamed woods. Like him, she had lost everything too. Even after so long, Elden is still helping people in need out of the kindness in his heart.

He can afford to be a little selfish.

The next big incident was the mission that nearly went belly-up for the Strauss siblings. Somebody would have died if it wasn't for Elden arriving on the scene in time. It was fucking obvious that Mirajane has an obvious thing for that lazyass after that. She already had a thing for him since she came into the guild but it seems that she only really realised it after the mission with The Beast.

And it is making him want to fucking cringe from how Elden and Mirajane both have pathetic crushes on each other but are both not taking the initiative to do it.

There was one day that he finally snapped because he could not carrying on watching that fucking debacle playing out in front of him. It has been going on for _days_. He and his Thunder God Tribe had left for their mission and got out of Magnolia because he couldn't stand seeing Elden and Mirajane acting like a pair of lovesick puppies but yet too shy to confess to each other. It makes him want to fucking _puke_ at the sight of that.

And when the Thunder God Tribe returned from their mission the two idiots were _still_ at it. Oh God, they _still_ hadn't settled whatever is between them?

The entire guild finds it amusing and bets are running high. He couldn't be bothered and went home to take a nap because the mission cost him his sleep and he needs his sleep right then. He finds that he couldn't take the fucking nap that he wants when his traitorous nose picked up two scents. One belongs to Elden, the other is Mirajane. They are both circling Magnolia Town in a cat-and-mouse game with Elden constantly evading Mirajane.

He can ignore it when they circled Magnolia Town the first time. But it was getting really fucking irritating when his nose told him that they had already circled Magnolia for the second, third, and even the fucking fourth time with Mirajane still not able to catch up to Elden.

For fuck's sake, he just wanted to take a damn nap after he returned from his mission. He hasn't had fucking sleep in forever because that mission took all night to complete. The two shitheads had been circling around Magnolia for the _entire_ morning and Laxus fucking Dreyar just wants his sleep goddamit!

He lost it. He really lost it. He jumped out of bed, grabbed his coat that his best friend had given him before throwing it over his shoulders and disappeared in a bolt of lightning. It is not hard to track down Mirajane even without his nose. She has one of the largest magical reserves in the guild as an S Class mage.

He also found the rest of their generation with Mirajane save a few that are not around. They are all laughing at her plight at not being able to find Elden.

"Fucking pathetic."

That was how he made his entrance, because this scene is so fucking _pathetic_ that he cannot even bring himself to watch it any longer. He just wants this cat-and-mouse game to end so that he can finally have his goddamn sleep.

"I'm sick of seeing you and that lazyass going about in circles like some lovesick puppies and making my head spin. It's making me want to _puke_. He's on his way to Lake Scilioria, shitheads. You might catch him if you are fast enough."

Fuck, it's obvious that Elden's next destination _has_ to be Lake Scilioria if these idiots actually bothered to use their heads to fucking _think_.

He then turned to Mirajane, who was all dressed up. She is actually wearing a fucking _dress_ , probably to impress that lazyass. Joke's on her. She could probably be in nothing but in just an old wrinkly shirt and that lazyass would still look at her like she's the world's greatest wonder. That lazyass obviously likes her just as much as she likes him.

But he still cannot stand just how fucking _stupid_ Mirajane is. She's a fucking S Class mage and she doesn't even fucking act like one. With how much magic she has and without her keeping it in check, Elden will obviously know that she's coming after him if she didn't make an effort to hide her presence. If she wants to finally catch up to Elden without him realising, she will need to clamp down on her magic and stop it from brightening up their magic sense like a fucking lighthouse in the dark night sky.

It's so, fucking, _simple_.

The thing he does for his best friend. Seriously.

"And don't fucking flaunt your magic that much. It's like seeing a wildfire approaching you at midnight, it's fucking _obvious_ that you were coming. You are an _S Class mage_ , act like one and fucking get a handle on your magic."

His point made, he disappeared in a bolt of lightning and headed back to his house to finally get his sleep.

It was only when he woke up from his nap when a certain thought hit him.

Fuck, did he just acted as El's wingman?

The fact that El and Mira became an official couple that very day told him that yes, he did.

* * *

Two more years passed. Things happened. Things changed once more.

He got excommunicated for his foolishness.

It's fine. He should have seen it coming. Elden had told him time and time again that his path was one of self-destruction. It was him that didn't listen. He got what he deserved.

At least they are each other's best friend again. He had finally gotten a handle on his stupid pride and it will never get in his way ever again if he has a say in it. It had been a bitter pill to swallow and a tough lesson to learn, but it is one that he will never forget.

Elden still believes that he can be Guild Master one day and he will still continue to strive to be the Ace, his Ace. He has no words for that because words can no longer explain the gratitude he has for his best friend.

So this time, he will prove it through his own actions, that he is still a viable candidate to be the next Guild Master of Fairy Tail despite his excommunicated status.

They kept in constant contact through communication lacrima. Sometimes their conversations are brief, sometimes it can be a little long. Elden is helping him to keep an eye out on their Thunder God Tribe in his stead.

And when Elden called him one day to tell him that Fairy Tail needed his help on Tenrou Island, he rushed back without delay. It was just in time when he saved Bickslow from Bluenote.

 _Nobody touches their Thunder God Tribe. Nobody touches Fairy Tail._

It was then that he finally acted like a true S Class mage of Fairy Tail during the battle on Tenrou.

* * *

Years passed again.

Right after the Tenrou incident, through the guild's collective request (or more like demand), he got reinstated as a member of Fairy Tail once more. The last time he shed tears was when he was excommunicated. He shed tears once more when he was so readily accepted into that family again.

He swears that he will never repeat his mistakes. It had cost him too much.

Elden and Mira got married. They settled down, had a kid. He became the godfather of that little demon. Erza's the godmother. The Thunder God Tribe bowed to her every whim and so did the guild. The world is doomed.

Gildarts stepped down and slowed his pace the moment he found out he had a daughter all along. Gildarts no longer disappear for months on end and come back regularly to the guild to mingle with the members. What a fucking surprise. Gildarts and Cana are father and daughter. Who would have known.

Elden eventually became the new Ace of the guild when Gildarts decided to retire from his position. Gildarts is still an active member, but he decided that he prefers spending time with his daughter and family more than he prefers going on missions. He still goes on a long mission every now and then, but that will be his father-daughter bonding time between him and Cana when that happens. He no longer goes on missions alone.

However, with both Gildarts and Cana going on the same mission, the stack of complaints the guild received only piled even higher.

He himself worked his way up from scratch again in order to redeem himself. This time, he wants people to acknowledge him through the right way. This time, he will protect the guild the right way.

And when he became the Fourth Guild Master of Fairy Tail, Elden was there beside him as his Ace. Elden was the first to address him as "Master Laxus" as per their promise.

It took a long while and they definitely went about a big circle to do so, but they both fulfilled their childhood promise to each other.

He is the sword of the guild and his Ace is the shield. Together, they are unstoppable.

Fairy Tail got even stronger and livelier. You could mistake it for being a mini childcare with how members of their generation are starting to pop babies out left and right. They are still the number one guild in Fiore but they have to cut down on the member intake because they are starting to get a little too popular. The acceptance criteria for newbies got a lot more stringent out of necessity. A guild that became too big without any checks in place would just be a ticking time bomb waiting to explode, so they don't really have a choice for the sake of the guild.

Then again, it's not like the acceptance criteria is _that_ hard to meet.

All the aspiring applicants have to do is to prove that they have a good heart. It is more like a secret test they hold. If the members feel like the applicants are good people, they accept them without question. If the only reason the applicants join is to have that number one title hanging on their head then they will kick them out without a second thought. It's that simple.

Fairy Tail doesn't care if you have a lame as hell magic or a super cool one. What matters is who and what you are within as a person. A guild is more than just the strength and prestige that comes with it. A guild is all about its members.

Now that he is Guild Master, he is supposed to be the one with the highest authority in the guild, right? Apparently a little demon doesn't think so.

"Brat, I know you are hiding right there. Come out."

"Ehehehe." His goddaughter climbed out from behind his shelf in the guildmaster's office, his office, her hand rubbing the back of her head in a sheepish manner just like how her father would do. The only kid in the entire guild that would frequently trespass into his office is her. The cheeky little demon with hair as black as her father is the only one with both the smarts and guts to do so.

This is Mirel Tyrell, the little demon spawn and he is said demon spawn's godfather.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Get out. Shoo, I need to continue doing the paperwork."

"But Uncle Laxus~"

"It's _Master_ Laxus."

"But Uncle Laxus! I just made mummy mad again and you know how she is when she's mad! Just let me hide here for the day, pretty please?"

"Your problem is not my problem."

Don't you dare, Laxus Dreyar. Don't you dare to look up and stare into those blue eyes. Those stupid puppy dog eyes that can make his mental resistance crumble faster than he can say Fairy Tail.

"Ah, what a pity. And I purposely brought a bottle of freshly made orange juice for a certain favourite uncle today." That little demon gave a long sigh. She's only four and yet she already mastered the art of bribery down to an art form. The fact that she can speak so fluently at the age of four speaks volumes about her intellect, something which she definitely inherited from her father. But those bribery skills? Who did she take after in this regard? Certainly not her parents.

Must be Yukino's influence, or Cana. Either her or Cana.

Then again, it is working. That orange juice bribe is _working_ and he hates himself for it.

Without looking up from his paperwork, he asked the little brat.

"Is there pulp in it?"

"Uh huh. But you don't seem to want it since you want me to get out of the office… so…"

That little demon took the bottle of orange juice with her ( _where did she even pull it out from in the first place?_ ) and slowly walked in the direction of the door, that insufferable dramatic sigh leaving her lips. Laxus took a silent whiff with his nose and _goddammit_ , it is really _fresh_ orange juice. Like plucked and juiced today morning kind of fresh.

"Brat."

The little demon immediately spun around on her heels and put on an innocent looking face. It doesn't fool him but it still works on him. The brat might as well be the secret Guild Master of Fairy Tail with how he is under her thumb.

"Yes, Master Laxus?"

"Put the bottle here on my table."

"Why should I?"

"Because the only other option is for you to go out and get a scolding from your mother."

She jumped onto his lap with a cheer.

"Yay! I know Uncle Laxus is the best! The best uncle! My favourite uncle! All hail Uncle Laxus! Best uncle in the world!"

"It's-"

" _-Master_ Laxus. Yes, yes, I know. Hey hey Uncle Laxus! Let's go out and play! Come on, it will be fun!"

"No. I have work to do. See?"

The pile of unfinished paperwork on his table makes him feel exhausted just by looking at it. Natsu is responsible for at least half of those. Goddamit Natsu, you are a father now! Set a good example for your daughter and **_stop_** destroying public property!

"Awwwwwww. And here I have another bottle of _fresh_ orange juice hidden _somewhere_ ~ What a pity~"

He facepalmed. Who on earth told her about his weakness to orange juice? Freed? Bickslow? Ever? Who spilt it? WHO?!

He picked her up from his lap and let her sit on his shoulders, just like how Gramps let him sit on his when he was a child watching the Fantasia Parade. He walked out of the door of his office with the little demon cheering at the top of her lungs the entire time. In his right hand is the bottle of orange juice the little demon bribed him with. Draped over his shoulders is the same brown coat he received from his best friend more than a decade ago.

"Yay! Woohoo! Playtime!"

"Only twenty minutes, then we are coming back here."

"One hour!"

"Thirty minutes or no deal."

"Deal!"

Goddammit he had really spoiled her rotten.

Not like he actually regrets it though.

* * *

 **AN: I will be posting a total of three Sidewalk chapters that serve as a bridge to a timeskip while explaining Elden's past with the three important figures in his life that happened before the start of the first chapter. Elden's relationship with Laxus is the first of three. The other two would be Mira and Yukino. I actually finished writing Mira's chapter before Laxus's but I thought it is better to post Laxus as the first given that Laxus and Elden were best friends. I wrote Yukino's last and I decided to post her chapter as the last one as well because among these three people, she entered Elden's life the latest.**

 **You can take these three chapters as an apology for making you guys wait this long. You can also take it as fanservice. Either way, I myself really love these three chapters, especially the one about Mira. Word of warning, hers is _really_ long. For readers who love reading a chapter without disruptions from beginning to end, you might want to make sure you have some actual spare time before reading it because it will definitely take awhile to finish reading the story about Mira. If all goes well I can post a chapter a day until all three Sidewalk chapters are posted.**

 **As always, RIP to my sleep schedule and I hope you enjoy this chapter. I swear, these three Sidewalk chapters are going to be the death of me for the lack of sleep they are causing me.**

 **Then again, I don't regret it because these three chapters are in my opinion, the best chapters in TAOFT and will probably remain this way.**


	26. Chapter 26- Sidewalk: Shield & Demon

She was just an ordinary little girl.

She is the oldest of three. She has a little brother and a baby sister. They are adorable and she is sure her parents think that way too.

"Mira! Come help me out in the kitchen okay?"

"Coming!" She would say as she ran into the kitchen to help her mother. It was how she picked up her love for cooking. She got it from her mother.

Her family is not rich, just well-off enough to not need to worry about their three meals and enough to have a roof over their heads. Her father is a magical beast hunter with an affinity for Transformation Magic, something that her villagers seem to fear for reasons unknown. It can be seen from how they view their family and her whenever they walk around the village. She may be young, but she can tell from the look in their eyes.

"It's fine, Mira." Her father would say as she sat on his lap and listened to him sing. Sometimes he would pick up the guitar and play a song or two for her, mother, and their siblings. "It doesn't matter if someone is a demon or human, what makes them good or evil is in what their heart is made of. Likewise, having magic doesn't necessarily mean I am evil or our family is evil."

"Even if the villagers don't like you? Even if they don't like the fact that you can use magic? They are scared of us!"

"Magic or not, it is important to love yourself, Mira." Her father would say as she tapped where her heart is with his finger. "If you have magic, it is a part of you. If you don't have magic, it is also a part of you. To be happy, you have to love what you are no matter what you may be. True love is to accept what is within than to judge one based on their exterior."

She didn't get her father's words back then. She didn't get it until she met a certain lazy, socially awkward, yet adorable man that she cannot help but fall in love with eventually after he saved her.

Her father would play her many tunes that she can still remember by heart. Her father was the one who taught her how to sing and how to play the guitar. It was how she picked up her love for music. She got it from her father.

"Your hair is so pretty, Mum." She would often say when she insists on helping her mother comb and tie the beautiful ivory white hair that she and her siblings all inherited from their mother. She likes her mother's hair and she likes it even further that she got the same hair. Her father agrees with her 100% on this.

"Our little Mira has really pretty hair too!" Her mother would tickle her sides and she would beg her mother to stop as they rolled on the floor. "And she has the same pretty blue eyes like her daddy!"

Her childhood was happy. It was one filled with love, laughter, and smiles. She would grow up not knowing how dark and cruel the world can be at times. She should have known better.

She is the eldest. It is her responsibility to take care of her siblings and the house whenever her parents are out for work. Elfman and Lisanna adore her as well and the three of them spent many happy moments together, whether it is just them or with their parents.

Her mother has magic that allows her to communicate with animals, making her the perfect scout in the harsh wilderness. Together with her father, they form a pair that specialises in hunting magical beasts. Fiore is not a safe place. Dark guilds running rampant across their country is one thing, the number of ferocious man-eating magical beasts that lurk outside their villages and towns are another. It is one reason why Fiore has Mage Guilds, because it is the only way Fiore knows how to best meet the demands of their citizens who are constantly requesting beasts to be slayed or dark guilds to be chased off. The Rune Knights are too ineffective.

She was about to turn thirteen when their father and mother received another job to slay a certain magical beast. There was nothing out of the ordinary to indicate that it would be the last time she would ever see them. Their parents said their goodbyes as per usual, promising to return in time to celebrate her birthday with her. She and her siblings sent them off with smiles on their faces.

They waited for days. Days turned into weeks. Her parents didn't make it back in time to celebrate her birthday with her.

Weeks later, their parents returned.

In coffins.

* * *

It broke them. It hit them hard.

With their parents gone, she is the only one left to hold this house together. She has to find work to support her siblings. She doesn't care what happens to her or what difficulties she faced as long as her siblings are well and thoroughly fed. For that end, she endured.

If the villagers were cold to them before, they are now outright hostile towards them now that their parents are gone. She can't even buy food for her siblings because they would jack up the price of the groceries so high that she could not afford it. So, she decided to hunt for food herself, just like how her father taught her to.

If only she had magic. It doesn't matter if it is like her father's Transformation Magic or like her mother's ability to communicate with animals. If only she had magic like her parents, hunting would be so much easier.

She was moderately successful. Her siblings were too young but they were eager to help their Mira-nee. They tidied the house without her asking to and diligently did the homework she set for them when she was not around. She hunted for food in the forest outside their village, making sure that they have enough to fill their bellies. She sold the fur pelts she skinned from her kills to the travelling merchant who would pass by the village every Friday, because he is the only one who would not try to purposely sabotage her by quoting her an unfair price. At least he's unbiased towards them.

Because of the quality of the fur pelts she provided the travelling merchant, she soon saved enough for all of them to leave the village. She knows better than anyone how dangerous outside their village is. Just a month. One more month of selling fur pelts to that kind merchant would be enough for her to gather enough money to post a job request and hire the services of a nearby Mage Guild to escort them to another town, a town which is friendlier towards mages. She chose Magnolia, because it was where their parents tend to stop by in order to sell their captured prize. Her father had told her how accepting the people there are of mages because of the Number One Mage Guild that had made its home there.

Fairy Tail.

Her parents had considered moving to Magnolia before, but it never happened because her siblings were young back then and the topic never had a chance to resurface. The cost of living at Magnolia is also significantly higher, another reason why her parents had hesitated. Now, however, is not the time to hesitate. She has to get her siblings out of this hellhole that is full of prejudice. She will not let them grow up here. They deserve better.

She discussed her plans with her siblings and they all agreed that they don't want to stay here any longer. They gave her their full support.

From her frequent exchanges with the kind travelling merchant, he told her that he passed by Magnolia frequently enough that he can help her post a job request to Fairy Tail on her behalf. All he asked in return is a few more fur pelts than what she usually sells him the next time they met. She readily agreed. That is not a hard request to meet.

With that done, all she had to do now was to wait for somebody from Fairy Tail to accept the job request she sent out.

It was after returning from a particular hunt that she had a sudden urge to meet and talk to her parents. If all goes to plan, she and her siblings would leave this place a week or two from now, depending on how fast their job request was accepted by Fairy Tail. She doesn't know if she would have the chance to return here again. Her parents were buried in the cemetery of the village's church located at the edge of the village. She made her way there with her kills slung across her back. Her father would be proud at how capable her little girl is if he could see her right now.

"Hey Dad. Hey Mum." She talked to them as she sat in front of their graves, her arms wrapping around her knees. "We… We are leaving soon."

She rubbed away the wetness from her eyes because she doesn't want them to see her cry. She is strong. She is Mirajane Strauss, her daddy's strong little girl and her mother's precious daughter.

"L-Life has been hard." She choked out. "But I'm trying! I'm trying my best! Soon, Elfman and Lisanna would not live in this place like we are lower class citizens! I got someone to post a job request to Fairy Tail. Maybe about a week or two later someone would accept the job request and we could finally have a capable mage escort us to Magnolia! You said Magnolia is safe and nice, right? The streets are clean and we don't need to worry about magical beasts coming to cause problems because the mage guild there keeps the people safe. I know it is a lot harder to earn a living there, but I will figure something out! I promise! I will take care of Elfman and Lisanna! I'm strong! I took care of Elfman and Lisanna and held the house together like you guys asked me to! I did good, right?!"

She choked out another sob before asking again in a whisper.

"Right?"

She hates herself for crying, hates herself for being so weak. But this is the only place where she has the privacy to cry. She doesn't want her siblings to see her cry because she is the oldest. If she breaks down in front of them, what does it say about their circumstances? Her siblings would lose all optimism. That cannot happen.

"I… I'm going back now." She told her parents as she slowly got off the ground. "Elfman and Lisanna would worry about me if I'm not back soon. We will visit you again before we leave, I promise."

Casting one last look at her parents' graves, she turned to leave, only to stand rooted in shock when she saw a grotesque creature standing across her. Its gigantic maw is partly open and drooling. She doesn't even know how to describe that _thing_.

But she does know it has to be dangerous.

She turned to run. She knows that is not a beast that she can slay. She needs to stay alive or there is no one else left to take care of her siblings.

The thing, beast, demon, whatever it is, gave chase. She only ran a few metres before it pounced on her and pinned her to the floor. On instinct, she whipped out her father's hunting dagger and stabbed its neck, only to lose all hope when the dagger shattered in front of her eyes. What kind of creature has such a thick hide around its neck?!

That was also the only thing her father left her. It was the birthday present he gave her last year.

The creature was enraged. It roared in her face and she screamed.

The creature's gigantic maw reaching for her face was the last thing she saw before she blacked out.

* * *

"DEMON!"

"GET OUT OF HERE!"

"DEMON FILTH! BEGONE!"

Her head is hurting. It hurts so much.

She cannot bear the pain. She cannot bear the noise outside her house. She cannot bear anything right now. She cannot bear to see how ugly she looks right now. All she has are her siblings who huddled by her side. It is obvious that they are scared, but they are by her side despite the fact that she is now… now…

 _A demon._

The villagers threw stones at their house from outside. Their windows are all shattered. Everywhere is a mess. The house which the three of them had put in so much effort to maintain, the only thing their parents left them, is now a mess.

What did they do to deserve this? Just what?!

She can feel the darkest part of her mind whispering to her to just let loose and go wild, to spill the blood of those fools who dared to try and harm her siblings. Her hands gripped the sides of her head as she screamed, trying to will these thoughts away. She doesn't know what happened to that demon but it must have entered her body somehow. She now has the same right arm as that demon.

Her scream did wonders as the villagers scattered, afraid that the demon had finally been let loose from her body and was about to go on a rampage. She cannot stand the sight of her arm. She cannot even stand the sight of herself. She hates her body. She smashed every mirror in the house. She doesn't want to see her own reflection right now.

Not when she is so… _grotesque_.

"L-Let's leave…" She finally reached her breaking point. All she is doing is huddling against a wall and curling up on herself. She cannot even trust herself to be in her siblings' presence, even if they are the only thing left that is anchoring her sanity.

Right now, she doesn't even know who she is anymore. She doesn't even know if she is still Mirajane Strauss, not with the scary demon arm constantly reminding her that she is no longer human. She doesn't know if she is still human or is now a demon. Not with that voice constantly whispering at the back of her mind.

Who is she right now? Is she still the same Mirajane Strauss?

But she has enough rational thought to realise that they _have_ to leave before it is too late. If the villagers are willing to throw stones at them right now, she doesn't want to know what they will do tomorrow, the day after, or the week after. They can no longer afford to wait until the hired mage from Fairy Tail arrives, if they even accept her job request at all.

She cannot bet her siblings life on a what-if. They mean the world to her.

Her siblings did not question her as they quickly packed whatever they needed and left immediately. They didn't even have the time to say goodbye to their parents. Their choice proved to be the correct one when they saw their house being set ablaze from afar when they were climbing a nearby mountainous route to reach Magnolia. They have a good view of their village from here.

"T-They-! Our house! Our home!"

She hugged her little sister close as Lisanna bawled her eyes out. She doesn't want to know what would happen to her siblings if they stayed there for even a little longer.

 _These bastards._ They would commit _murder_ just because she now has a demon arm?! Her siblings are innocent!

The three of them watched as their former home was being reduced to cinders. After one last look, they turned around and continued their journey to Magnolia.

Humans, demons.

She cannot tell the difference between the two anymore.

* * *

It's dangerous making the journey by themselves in this manner. The journey to Magnolia will take them at least two weeks and that is if they are lucky. If they are lucky enough to not get lost in this wilderness or run into dark guilds or bandits or man-eating magical monsters.

She's scared too, but she has to be brave because she is the oldest. If not her, then nobody else. Nobody else can protect her siblings. If she has to use the demon's power and lose her humanity to protect her siblings, then so be it.

She will be a demon if it means keeping her family safe.

Luckily for them, she had the foresight to teach and instruct her siblings to preserve any leftover food they have just during the past weeks in case unforeseen circumstances popped up. For now, they at least have enough dried meat saved up to eat on their journey. If they are lucky enough, maybe she can catch a fish or two from any streams they came across and she can finally cook them a fresh meal.

It was the fourth day after they left the village when she met him.

She can still remember their first encounter. Night had fallen and they had set up camp in an area that she thinks was safe. As safe as being out here in the wild like this can be for children their age. She had been suffering from a lack of sleep because she was the one who kept watch for the past three nights. Her siblings had offered to keep watch but she knew that they would not be able to do a good job at it, at least not when they are at this age. She's the oldest. She's now the only one capable of protecting the family. So, she made sure that her siblings slept and got their rest instead.

She can only hope that her body can withstand the effects of lack of sleep until they reach Magnolia.

Tried as she might, she cannot stay awake. She was about to nod off when the rustling of leaves got her jumping up in alarm. She whipped out her father's dagger again. It may be broken, but whatever is left of the blade is still sharp enough to make a nasty cut.

Besides, it is the only thing she has left to defend her family that is not her demon arm.

A boy around her age emerged from the dense foliage. It was the first time she met him, the man who would be the most important man in her life and become part of her family.

He is unassuming at first glance. Black hair, black eyes with that sleepy look that made her question if he had also not slept for three nights. A dark blue jacket complete with black shirt and long pants completed the look. All in all, he is very ordinary. Easily forgettable if you are just passing by him. You could never imagine him to be a powerful mage unless you have prior knowledge.

But when she first saw him, she knew better. Unlike them, this guy did not have a single hair out of place despite being in a dangerous place like this. His sleepy gaze barely concealed that dangerous look of a predator that she is so familiar with when she was out hunting. He cannot be normal.

He is dangerous.

"W-Who are you?"

Her siblings had woken up by now and also took out the sharpened sticks that she had made for them to use as spears in case they needed to defend themselves. They are all afraid and shaking, but they have nowhere to run.

His eyes slowly scanned each and every one of them before he slowly raised his arms up in a gesture of peace, his facial expression betraying nothing.

"Hey, I'm just a passing mage looking for my runaway client. By the way, do any of you know a certain Mirajane Strauss? She's the runaway client I'm looking for."

 _What?_

"You… are a Fairy Tail mage?"

"Yeah." He took off his jacket and rolled up the sleeve of his shirt, showing them the familiar guild mark of the number one guild in Fiore.

"So, can you now put down your..." He pointed to their sorry excuse for weapons they are holding in their hands. "I mean no harm."

"Mira-nee! A Fairy Tail mage that is looking for you! Our job request had been taken up!"

"Y-Yeah." She stated dumbly as Lisanna hugged her in joy, not believing their dumb luck as well. She quickly told the Fairy Tail mage her name and pleaded with him to help them.

"I'm the Mirajane Strauss you are looking for! Please! Escort us to Magnolia! Please!"

"Sure." The mage gave her a lazy smile, his hands in his pockets. "There's a nearby village not far from here. We can go and rest there so that you can sleep properly. You all look like you never slept properly, especially you."

He gestured at the dark circles forming around her eyes and she flinched.

"W-We… don't have the money…"

"Don't worry about that. My treat." He said as he gave a big yawn with a hand over his opened mouth. "That convincing enough for you to come along?"

She gulped and blinked her eyes in disbelief. Why is someone that she never met before so kind to them? W-What if he found out about her demon arm? Would he try to kill her like what the villagers tried to do? Mages do kill demons to protect the country, right? What if-

"Come on. Let's go."

She didn't have a chance to refuse. An invisible force lifted them all into the air and they screamed in surprise. The next thing they knew, they were all flying into the air and hugging him for dear life, their screams trailing after them as they flew through the dark night sky.

At that point in time, she would never have thought that he would still tease her for that scream to this day.

* * *

They reached the nearby village he talked about very soon. The innkeeper wasn't happy that he got woken up so late at night, but gave them the only room left despite the amount of grumbling he did. The large wad of cash the mage slammed on the counter might have helped.

The only room left in the inn was a large one, the most expensive one and the ridiculous price was the reason why it was the only one left. The mage yawned again when she and her siblings entered and put down their belongings, still a little wary of this Fairy Tail mage.

Fairy Tail mages have a good reputation despite the rumours of them being a hazard to public property, but he is still a stranger to them. A stranger that is being too kind to them.

Very suspicious indeed.

"Well, the girls can use the bathroom first." The mage pointed to the bathroom at the corner of the room they are in. "But first, Mirajane, we need to discuss this job in detail."

"I-I-I can't pay you for this room." She stated upfront. "I-"

"I'm not talking about money." He snapped back, obviously a little annoyed and short-tempered. He does look like he's suffering from a lack of sleep as well from how he's acting. "Just come here and take off that cloak."

She froze.

He knew.

"I…"

She took a step backward for every step he walked towards her. Her breathing quickened as her mind raced a thousand thoughts per second. What if, what if…

"I reached your village first before I backtracked to find you. I already know about the demon-possessed girl with a demon arm. It was all the villagers were talking about." He stated as if it was a matter-of-fact. "It was how I tracked the three of you down because they described you three as 'white-haired demon brats with blasted blue eyes'."

"I-I'm **_NOT_** A DEMON!"

She didn't know why she screamed at him, but she did. He took it without flinching, that same bored and sleepy look still on his face. Elfman and Lisanna froze at their spots, not knowing what to do. Her left hand went to grab her right arm tightly, still hidden by the cloak she is wearing.

"I know, that's why I told you to take your cloak off. What's important is what is within, not what you look like on the outside. Let me see your arm so that I can see how serious your condition is, so that I can report back to my Guild Master beforehand and see if he can do something about it when we reach Magnolia."

Without her consent, he stepped forward and grabbed onto her right arm, revealing it from within the cloak for him to see. Her first reaction is to try and pull her arm back. She knew how powerful her demon arm is. It can crush bricks like they are made of powder and shatter walls with a punch.

But she cannot escape his iron grip.

"Let Mira-nee go!"

Lisanna and Elfman tried to rush to her aid, but they were stopped when they found themselves slamming their fists on an invisible wall. The mage did not seem bothered as he ran a finger along her demon arm to inspect it. She cannot move. Some type of invisible restraint is restricting her movements.

"You are no demon. This is your magic. You have magic."

Those words were like a godsend as she tried to process what they meant. She froze again, so did her siblings. She did not move when his hands reached out to gently untie her cloak and let it drop to the floor, revealing the demon arm that she tried so hard to hide. She did not move when he gently grabbed hold of her demon hand and held it in front of her face.

"You have magic, Mirajane. There's no need to be ashamed of your arm, be proud of it. Ever heard of vulcans?"

She nodded mutely.

"They have the same type of magic as you, Take Over magic. It is a magic that you use to take over the power of an entity and use it to fight. In this case, you probably took over a demon. You just don't know how to turn off your magic which is why your arm ended up looking like this. You are no demon, Mirajane. You _defeated_ a demon. Be proud of yourself. Your willpower must be exceptionally strong to suppress and fully take over the demon without any prior magic training. You defeated a demon. What you did was something that even many adult mages did not achieve in their lifetimes. Hold your head high, be proud. You did well."

With that, the mage instructed Lisanna to drag her into the bathroom to wash up. She barely remembered what happened as Lisanna helped to wash her while she was still in a daze.

 _You are no demon. You defeated a demon. Be proud of yourself._

She cried. She sobbed and cried at those kind words.

When she walked out of the bath with Lisanna, already changed into her clean clothes, she did not hide her demon arm.

That night, she finally slept peacefully.

It was a dreamless sleep.

* * *

When she woke up the next day, it was nearing noon.

She jumped out of bed, flustered that she actually slept in for so long. She looked around and saw her siblings beside her, snoring away on the bed without a care in the world. Elfman is drooling and Lisanna is hugging him like he is a big teddy bear.

The Fairy Tail mage cannot be seen in the room. The sleeping bag left on the floor told her that that was where he probably slept last night and that he was just gone for the moment. Still, she cannot help but worry. If he's gone, then their journey to Magnolia would only be more difficult. If-

The door opened with a creak as the mage reentered the room, carrying a tray of hot food.

"You are up early." He told her as he set the tray down on a nearby table. "Come on, let's have some breakf- I mean, lunch. My treat."

"I-"

"You cannot pay me, I know. I heard it the first time. Like I said, my treat."

He gestured for her to sit down by the table where he is at and she did that, albeit a little hesitant. She carefully bite on the piece of garlic bread on her plate. It is still warm. She hadn't had such warm food in quite a while, hadn't had bread for quite a while, much less garlic bread.

"Eat more if you are still hungry. Keeping your magic turned on like that constantly must be draining for you."

"Do you know how to turn it off?" She asked softly, not really daring to meet his eyes. She had owed him a lot since they first met, he had gone above and beyond what is stated in the job request she sent out. She doesn't dare to ask him to do more for her but he is her only hope right now.

"No, I don't. I don't specialise in your brand of magic. I called Master earlier. Master knows how to solve your problem, but he can only do so when you reach Magnolia and take a look at your arm personally. Do you want to join Fairy Tail?"

She blinked at him in surprise. She? Join _Fairy Tail?_ The _number one_ guild in Fiore?

"Why are you so nice to me?" She blurted out. Everybody had been nasty to her and her siblings ever since her parents passed away. Those are people that she knew for more than a decade. Yet, this stranger which she only met last night had shown her more kindness than she had received in her village in the past thirteen years of her life.

The mage remained silent as he took a brief pause from eating. There is a faraway look in his eyes as he stared out the window and she thought that she screwed up somehow.

"Believe it or not, I was like you."

He dipped his own piece of garlic bread in the soup before taking another bite out of it. He continued his tale.

"I'm kind of jealous of you, you know? Of everyone I know in Fairy Tail. You guys at least have family." He took a quick glance at her siblings that are still sleeping. "I… I don't remember who I really am, at least not fully. When my magic first awakened it was when I forgot who I am. I cannot remember who I was, what I did, where I lived. I am nobody, I have no identity. When I first woke up and discovered that I can use magic was when bandits were raiding what I assumed was my home. The two people that I later recalled to be my parents were already killed. Even after so long, even till now, I only remembered bits and pieces of who I am and the life I led until I woke up in a world filled with magic. Like what you experienced, people were trying to kill me. The bandits had knives and I don't know what, I had nothing. I just knew they were after my life. It was when my magic manifested to save me. My magic was the only thing I had."

He opened his right palm like a blooming flower. A small square pane of… _something_ manifested and floated lazily above his palm.

"This is my magic. Barrier magic. As far as I know, I'm the only person with this kind of magic. It was what saved me. It was this magic that allowed me to survive long enough until Master Makarov passed by and saved me from those bandits with a single punch. If it wasn't for him, I would have died. He never complained even if I burned a large hole in his wallet when I asked him to help bury the parents I never quite remembered or when I kept him up late at night when I broke down from my mental anguish of not knowing who I am. I still don't truly know who I am. You ask me why I'm so nice to you? This is why. I'm just trying to repay the kindness that Master Makarov showed me by doing the same to someone else who needed the help. I can see it in your eyes. That fear. That fear of your own magic, not knowing what it really is and constantly afraid of someone out to kill you. The fear of not knowing who you really are, I understand it better than you do. I was a literal nobody until I regained a part of my memories and made new ones with people who mattered."

An awkward silence descended upon the both of them.

"I haven't introduced myself, have I?" The mage gave a weak chuckle as he extended a hand towards her, his right hand. "Elden Tyrell, or at least, that's what I think my name was before I joined Fairy Tail. Just call me El. It's nice to meet you, Mirajane Strauss."

She extended her own hand to shake his, but paused when she realised it was her demon hand. However, he gave her an encouraging nod. She gulped and carefully went to shake hands with him using her demon hand.

"I-I'm Mirajane Strauss! Call me Mira."

He smiled at her and for the first time in months, she smiled.

"It's nice to meet you, Mira."

* * *

Once they broke the ice, their journey to Magnolia became more eventful and fun.

Elfman and Lisanna had tons of questions to ask Elden about Magnolia and Fairy Tail and Elden very patiently explained and answered their every query. Mira had her own questions as well, but she held herself back because Elden is busy enough as it is escorting them. Yes, he is hired to do just that, but he had already done way more than what the job entails. Already, he is bearing all the costs of their meals and stays at whatever inns they came across. She just doesn't want to impose on him any further.

He tried to undo the spell on her arm using something called Dispel, but his proficiency in the magic wasn't good enough. Whatever he did was only temporary and the demon arm would manifest itself once more within seconds. Still, she was happy to see that her arm can be turned back to normal even if it was only for a few seconds. To her, that was enough.

Before they knew it, they had reached Magnolia. She can still remember the first time she saw the guild building. The doors are huge, even bigger than the church in her village. She had never seen anything like this before.

"Go on in. They are a rowdy bunch, but they are very accepting."

He pushed open the doors of the guild. Like he said, they are rowdy. People are already drinking when it is not even noon and there are random fights here and there. Is this normal?

Judging from how unaffected Elden is at the sight, it must be.

People didn't seem to notice them as they walked past. It's like Elden has some sort of ability to fade from people's senses. Only one person noticed them.

"El."

A large man that is probably older than Elden by a few years stood in front of him with his arms crossed. His yellow hair, lightning shaped scar, the growl of his voice and imposing figure made an intimidating sight.

"Laxus." Elden greeted back without a hint of emotion, his hands in his pockets as per usual.

Laxus' eyes travelled towards her and her siblings as if appraising their worth. She flinched a little and instinctively stood in front of her siblings. For some reason, this Laxus guy feels hostile.

"Who are they?"

"My clients." Elden replied without skipping a beat. "If all goes well, maybe they would be our nakama as well."

Laxus had a very ugly scowl on his face when he heard that.

"Them?" He pointed at Lisanna, who hid behind her and clung onto her cloak in fear. "That weak little-"

"Laxus." Elden said in a warning tone as a wave of invisible pressure descended upon them. "Get out of my way. My client wants to meet Master Makarov."

Laxus's entire body sparked with lightning in response. The pressure got more and more suffocating as Mira and her siblings dropped to their knees, trying very hard to breathe.

 **"Laxus. El."**

A presence made himself known. An elderly voice cut through the tense atmosphere as a short old man walked up towards the pair. His presence is warm and helped to relieve the pressure she and her siblings were facing.

"Tch." Laxus clicked his tongue as he reined in his magic. He stormed past them as his shoulders brushed against Elden in a rough manner. He gave her and her siblings a harsh glare before walking out of the guild's doors.

It didn't escape her notice that all this while, Elden had a very sad look in his eyes when he saw Laxus leave.

* * *

She didn't know that Master Makarov is one of the Ten Wizard Saints. She didn't even know what the title of the Ten Wizard Saints meant until Elden explained it to them. Master Makarov is more than capable of helping her. He told them that she and her siblings showed great potential to be mages and offered them the chance to join Fairy Tail. He offered her and her siblings to join the _number one_ guild in Fiore, just like that, when they have nothing to offer.

She can see why Elden holds the old man in such high regard.

Instead of dispelling her demon arm like what Elden tried to do, Master Makarov's approach was different. Instead, he taught her how to use and control magic. He told her that the only way to permanently let the demon arm disappear is to get a good grasp on her own magic. Unfortunately, Fairy Tail does not have any Take Over mage. Take Over is not a very rare brand of magic, but it is not very common either. She is on her own to try and master her own magic.

Then comes the next problem. She and her siblings don't have a place to stay in Magnolia.

"Eh, I sure El won't mind you three crashing at his place for a month or two. Or three or four, five or six, you get the drift. Ain't that right, El?"

"M-Master Makarov! Elden had already done more than enough for us! I don't even have enough money to pay him for the job yet-"

"Nonsense!" Makarov waved it off. "Don't worry about the payment of the job. Fairy Tail will waive it off and besides, Elden is rich. Don't let his lazy appearance fool you. He is one of the most capable mages Fairy Tail has to offer despite his age and has taken many solo missions that even many adult mages cannot complete. He earned himself quite a sum from that. He is more than financially capable of supporting you and your siblings for even a few years if need be."

"Fairy Tail has a foster care system for new members who cannot take care of themselves. Wakaba took care of me for a short while until I am capable enough to go on missions and earn enough to be financially independent. Don't worry too much about it. It will be your turn one day to repay the favour to someone else who will need your help. Besides, the guild will take care of most of your living expenses for this time period. All I need to do is to let you sleep at my place until you get one of your own."

"El's right. Now with that out of the way…" Makarov went behind the counter and shuffled through some boxes, messily throwing the things in there out in his search for something. "Aha!"

The old man took out a stamp and proudly showed it to them.

"Now where do you want your guild mark to be?"

* * *

Elden's home is… neater than she thought.

His small little apartment is plain. The only thing of note is the big bookshelf that took up one entire wall. Other than the small kitchen, there is a table with two chairs and that is about it.

It is a little small for four people to be living here, but they can manage. They had lived through worse.

"You guys can take the bed." He told them as they settled in. She and her siblings are still tiptoeing a little around him since they are technically imposing on him. This time, for a long while.

"I-I-It's fine! We can take the floor!" She quickly said. This is his own home and she cannot live with it if Elden has to sleep on the floor of his own home for the next few months.

"I have a hammock." He told them as he took out a rolled up hammock from his cupboard and hung it on the hooks on two opposite walls. She has a feeling that the hooks were installed there for this very purpose. "I sleep in it all the time when the Thun-"

He clammed up all of a sudden, that same sad look glazed his eyes for a second before he just wordlessly went about to hang his hammock. She and her siblings exchanged glances, not really knowing what to do.

"If you want food, there should be some left in the fridge. Haven't had a chance to stock up since we just returned." He pointed to the kitchen just a few steps away. "Bathroom's over there as you can see. If you want to go anywhere, please tell me in advance. Magnolia is relatively safe because of Fairy Tail's presence, but crimes still happen every now and then. If you need anything-"

He took out another large wad of cash from his wallet and placed it on the table without even looking at the total sum. God damn, Master Makarov is right. Elden really is loaded.

"Just buy it. If you need more money, just tell me. Anything else you want to ask?" They shook their heads. "No? Then I'm going out for a short while to buy us some dinner. The three of you must be hungry. Go and wash up. I'll be back soon."

With that, he left.

"He looks… kinda sad just now." Lisanna whispered to them after Elden had left.

So it wasn't just her imagination.

* * *

Elfman and Lisanna settled into Fairy Tail pretty well. They are already playing with the kids there their age. Cana, Gray, Natsu, Erza, Levy, Jet, Droy. It's like her siblings had been part of Fairy Tail all along.

She, on the other hand, is not so sure. Is someone like her worthy enough to join Fairy Tail? Her demon arm is still there. What if she never succeeded and the arm never disappears? What then?

"Oh, you are staying at El's place?" Cana said in curiosity when the other kids learnt of this piece of information. "Huh. He never invited us to his place before even when we asked nicely."

"Yeah, have fun with all the awkward silences with him." Gray snorted. "He's **_not_** a people person. Heck, the only difference between him and Mystogan is that El actually shows his face. I don't even know what Mystogan looks like, only know his name."

"But El is strong! The rectangle magic thing is so powerful! If anybody can win the next S Class trial, it's him!"

"S… Class?" She asked in confusion. The world of mages is a different world from what she is familiar with. She is still learning the ropes.

"It is a title given only to our strongest mages!" Natsu exclaimed excitedly with his arms wide open. "Like Gramps and Gildarts! They are super strong! I want to be an S Class mage too!"

"Hey, what's El's place like?" Levy asked excitedly. "Does he have a lot of books? He reads a lot!"

"Uh, yeah." Elfman replied as he scratched his cheek.

"It's like one entire _waaaall_ big." Lisanna stretched her arms as far as she could sideways to emphasise Elfman's point.

"Really?!" Levy asked with stars in her eyes. " _Really?!_ A bookshelf as big as an _entire_ wall? It is filled with _books?!_ "

"Full of them." Mirajane replied. "I'm not sure if he reads everything on it though."

"Trust me, if it comes to El you should instead ask what books he _hasn't_ read yet." Cana said as she downed a cup of what smells suspiciously like alcohol. "He and Levy are the bookworms of our guild. They know a lot of things."

"Come to think of it, where is he?" Mira asked as she looked around. They had come to the guild with El but he disappeared without them realising.

"I told you, he's not a people person." Gray said, now only in his boxers. Wait, wasn't he properly clothed just a minute ago? Where did his clothes go? "If he's not outside clearing our job requests like a madman, he's outside training like a lunatic or inside the guild reading his book in some unseen corner. He cannot be found unless he wants to be found. That's El for you."

"Is he always like this?" Lisanna asked curiously.

"No. He… How do I put it?" Cana scratched the back of her head in slight frustration. "He was, and still is a recluse, but it only got a lot worse recently. He's very strong, people call him the Aegis of Fairy Tail because he's like an unbreakable shield. He was part of the Thunder God Tribe, the strongest team in our guild. He and Laxus were the co-founders, you already met Laxus the other day. They were the strongest duo Fairy Tail had to offer until they… had a fallout. Nobody knows the reason behind it, not even Master. The Thunder God Tribe were the only people El really talked to and after El left the team he just..."

"Never talk. He gets along just fine with us, but he hardly talks to us unless we talk to him first." Erza completed Cana's sentence for her. "Even then, conversations with him had always been brief. He doesn't like prolonged conversations and prefers to be alone."

"Maybe that's why Gramps wanted you guys to stay at his place." Jet pondered as he took on a thinking pose. "Maybe you guys can help him open up. El's behaviour is getting a little worrying, to be honest. I hardly see him in the guild anymore. He just keeps going on missions and the missions he goes on are those very difficult ones because he's almost on the level of S Class. We are not yet strong enough to go on those so we cannot partner up with him either."

"Hey, that's it!" Natsu jumped onto the top of a nearby table excitedly. "We can have our own S Class secret mission! Get El to talk!"

"Yeah, genius. How?"

"I don't know!"

"Then _think_ before saying something, flamebrain!"

"You wanna go, Ice Princess?!"

 _"Natsu. Gray."_

A stare from Erza was all it took to shut the pair up... for a moment.

"We can keep fighting him non-stop!" Undeterred, Natsu offered his opinion as he punched the air in front of him excitedly. "And then when I finally defeat El I can tie him up and force him to talk to us!"

"Tie him up?"

"Yeah! If he doesn't talk I will burn his precious books in front of him one by one until he does! That will make him talk!"

"Uh, Natsu-"

Elfman hurriedly winked at Natsu to clue him in to quickly shut up. The hot-headed boy didn't get the memo.

"Or I can draw funny things on his face-" Natsu made a funny face at that remark. Nobody laughed even if it was indeed hilarious. Instead, they are all sweating nervously.

"Natsu-"

"Don't you guys think it is a **_great_** idea?!" Natsu exclaimed excitedly as he breathed fire from his mouth, ignoring Cana's hint. Everybody is all either winking at him or gesturing for him to keep quiet but he just _doesn't get the hint._

"So how about it?! Who's with me?!"

They all facepalmed. It's too late.

"Me."

A voice sounded just right behind Natsu.

"That's great! Let's go and-"

Natsu paled the moment he turned around. A very unimpressed Elden stared right back at him.

"H-H-Hi El! W-W-What a nice day it is, huh?" Natsu began to sweat profusely in fear.

"Yes. What nice weather. As nice as how someone thinks burning my books and drawing funny things on my face are very nice things to do."

"W-W-Who said that?!" Natsu made an exaggerated motion of looking around. "I'll kick his ass!"

"You need to be more aware of your surroundings if you want to be an S Class mage. As of now, you are still an idiot if you cannot even sense my presence right behind you." Elden knocked Natsu on the top of his head with his knuckle, making him fall on his ass with a pained cry. He turned to her and she tensed up in reflex. Is Elden angry?

"Here. A spare key to my apartment." He passed it to her left hand, her right arm still hidden by her cloak. It is only at his place that she dares to take her cloak off. "I won't be around for at least the next two weeks so you guys will need it. If you need money I had already placed it in that usual place. If you need more just ask Master."

He turned around to leave right after he said that.

"Have a safe trip!" Lisanna waved at his departing form and Elden lazily waved back in return without looking back. He disappeared out of the guild's doors seconds later.

"We can go take a look at El's place!" Levy squealed the moment Elden was out of earshot. "Come on, Mira! You have the key! Let us in!"

"Uhm, I don't think that is a good-"

 **"It is!"** The rest of the kids chorused in excitement.

"He will _kill_ me." Mira winced. Elden had been so kind to her and her siblings despite his anti-social self. She doesn't want to betray his trust, not after he trusts her with something as important as the key to his apartment.

"But those books! _El's personal collection!_ " Levy said dreamily. "He has so many books that I cannot afford to buy! I just want to read them! Just once! That's it!"

"Hmph. Pathetic."

That low growl sounded from above them on the second floor and they all jumped in surprise. They looked up, only to find the unpleasant Laxus looking down at them from above.

"If you know what's good for you, girl, you would do _all you can_ to prevent these idiots from touching his precious books. You don't know El. You don't know what he's really capable of. You don't know who he really is." Laxus slowly let out a predatory wicked grin on his face as he slowly dragged his thumb across his throat in a slitting motion. "El is not just strong. He's _dangerous_. You want to know _how_ dangerous? Let these idiots into his apartment and you _will_ know. You haven't seen him when he gets _truly_ angry. And when he's angry, he's a goddamn _monster_. Hehehe."

Laxus' cruel smile unsettled all of them. From the looks of it, the rest of the kids here don't know El that well too.

"The _only_ one who could ever be my equal is El. Do not forget that, _weaklings_." Laxus sneered as his gaze turned back to her. "I don't know what that traitor saw in you and your weak little siblings and honestly, I don't care. S Class? Don't make me _laugh_. None of you can be S Class. Maybe El can be one in the next trial but not you guys. Fairy Tail is the place where only the _strongest_ gather."

He gave another fierce and deranged sneer in her and her siblings' direction.

"It is not a place where _weaklings_ like you can come and go as you please. That will be the new guild rule when I finally become the Guild Master. Remember that, _bitch_."

With that, Laxus turned and disappeared beyond their vision into the depths of the second floor.

"DAMN YOU LAXUS! COME FIGHT ME!"

"Natsu! You cannot go up the second floor!" Erza quickly held Natsu back before he could run off. "Do you want to get punished by Master again?!"

"Don't take his words to heart. Laxus is always like that." Cana tried to reassure her with a shaky smile. "He was a lot more sociable when El was still part of the Thunder God Tribe. Now, he's just… like this. We all received the same treatment you did one way or another."

"He's mean." Lisanna stated with a pout.

"Yeah! He's mean!" Natsu raised an angry fist into the air as he fumed. "What was that for?!"

Throughout it all, Mira can only hear the echoes of Laxus' words.

 _You don't know El. You don't know what he's really capable of. You don't know who he really is._

Despite Laxus' harsh words, she realised that he's right. She doesn't know Elden all that well. She had thought that she had finally made a friend after the kind of life she had been through. He told her that she wasn't a demon. He told her to be proud of herself. The words he told her were so kind and full of sincerity.

Now, she isn't so sure.

* * *

"You're back!"

Lisanna's excited words got her to look up from where she is in the kitchen of Elden's apartment cooking dinner for her siblings. It had been slightly more than two weeks since they last saw him. Elden walked into his house with that usual sleepy look, but a lot more lethargic than usual.

"I am. Hi." He greeted them all in return with just three words. Why that look on his face when Lisanna greeted him? Did nobody ever say _welcome back_ to him before? And why does he look as if he is about to drop dead anytime soon?

"A-Are you _okay?_ " Mira dropped whatever she was cooking and quickly walked to his side. She wanted to hold and support him, but paused in her actions when she remembered Laxus' words.

 _You don't know El. You don't know what he's really capable of. You don't know who he really is._

"I'm fine. You guys carry on what you are doing. I will just go take a quick shower and sleep till tomorrow noon. There's no need to wake me up."

"El-"

He disappeared into the bathroom as soon as he said that, not giving her a chance to speak.

 _You don't know El. You don't know what he's really capable of. You don't know who he really is._

Just now, he felt so cold, so unlike when he first told her those kind words.

The kind words he said to her when he first told her that she's not a demon, were they real?

* * *

Even when they are living under the same roof as him, he doesn't speak to them unless necessary.

It's the same routine everyday. He would wake up, do his morning routine, eat breakfast, then disappear until night comes around when it's dinner. That is if he's not busy with missions. She and her siblings had volunteered to help take care of the chores in his house because they are already imposing on him. It only felt right to do something in return. He let them be as long as they don't damage his precious books. He even let them read it as long as he returned them in the same condition he lent them in.

"Uhm, El?"

"Yeah?" He answered lazily from where he is lying on his hammock above, flipping through a page of the new book he just bought from somewhere when he went out on the job that took him two weeks. She is lying on his bed below with her siblings. Her siblings had already fallen asleep, she was unable to fall asleep.

"Uh, Levy asked me to ask you if she could borrow some books from you?"

Her voice got softer and softer towards the end. He remained silent. Is he mad? He seems to love his books a lot.

After what seemed an eternity, he gave his reply.

"Just take whatever she wants you to borrow on her behalf. As long as she returns them in the same condition I gave her, I'm fine with it."

Mira looked back at the huge bookshelf. If Levy could have her way, wouldn't she need to bring the entire bookshelf along?

"How are you and your siblings settling in Magnolia and the guild so far? How about your magic lessons?"

His sudden questions got her to look up at him in surprise. He cared? He actually cares about them?

"Uhm, I guess we are doing fine." She told him as they spoke softly in the dark night, the room they are in dimly lit by the lacrima lamp near the hammock El is lying in as her siblings snored away on his bed. "The people of Magnolia are a lot more understanding towards us mages, I guess. Elfman and Lisanna also seem to enjoy being in the guild a lot. They often play with Natsu and the rest. They are happy, so I guess it's fine."

"What about you?"

She looked up in his direction in surprise once more.

"Me?"

He flipped another page.

"You talked about your siblings, but not you. What about you?"

"I…" She looked away, not really knowing how to answer. "I don't know why I'm here. Like, Fairy Tail is the strongest guild in Fiore. It's the place where the strongest gather, right? I am nothing. I have nothing to offer. I am a burden with this stupid arm. I still cannot turn off my magic no matter how much Master taught me. I don't know why we were accepted into Fairy Tail."

"A guild is more than just the prestige it has. It's about the members that made up the organisation. In Fairy Tail, we are each other's family. We are nakama. Family don't shun one another because you have a demon arm. You worry too much. Besides, we have weirder ones in the guild."

"If Fairy Tail is family, if we are nakama, then why aren't you in the guild?"

She immediately covered her mouth after she blurted out those words. Shit. Now he's definitely going to be mad.

There was another tense period of silence as her mind quickly went through the number of ways she is going to die by his hands.

She's so dead.

"I just want to avoid Laxus. If he's in the guild, then I won't stay in Magnolia. If he's out of the guild, then I don't mind staying in the guild and find a quiet corner to read my book. As I'm sure the others would have already told you, we are no longer on talking terms."

She looked back in his direction in surprise. Wait, that was the real reason?

"The Thunder God Tribe." She said softly. "The strongest team in Fairy Tail. You were a part of it, its co-founder. You are The Aegis of Fairy Tail, the unbreakable shield. You are strong."

She heard him give a snort.

"Tales of our exploits had been greatly exaggerated. Yeah, Laxus made S Class recently, but he's far from the strongest. Gildarts and Master are the really powerful ones. I'm aiming to be S Class too, so that I can finally go on solo S Class missions. I want, no, I _need_ to be stronger. I need to be S Class level kind of strong and then even more."

"For what?" She asked curiously from where she is lying on his bed.

"To be the Ace of the guild like Gildarts is. To be Ace is to support the guild master and to protect the guild. To be the Ace had been my goal all along."

"Not to be the Guild Master like Laxus is aiming to be?"

"Nah. Have you seen the paperwork Gramps do on a daily basis? No way."

She gave a soft giggle as the mental image of their guild master struggling and cursing at the paperwork in his office came to mind. Yeah, she can see why now.

"Laxus didn't give you any trouble, did he?"

"Eh?" She took a while to process his question. "Uh, no. Not really. Sure, he threw a few mean words at us but it's nothing compared to what the villagers insulted us with. If things got too far Master would step in, so it's fine."

"I see. That's good then." She heard another page being turned. "Since Laxus will be out of town for the next month or so which means I will be around, Master put me in charge of your magic lessons. Sleep well, you would need it if I'm the one training you. Word of warning, I'm a taskmaster."

He turned off the lacrima lamp and she heard some shuffling from the hammock as it swayed a little. She continued to look in his direction and finally decided to say what she wanted to say.

"Uh, El?"

"Yeah?"

"Thank you, for everything."

There was another period of silence.

"You are nakama now. Family helps each other."

* * *

Taskmaster? El is _insane_.

"That all you got? You defeated a _demon_ , Mira. That all you got?"

She struggled to even stand as she panted for breath. Magic control, physical conditioning, hand-to-hand combat, Elden is her instructor for each and everything she needs to learn to be a competent Fairy Tail mage. Elfman and Lisanna are spared only because they are still young and that their magic is not as mature as hers yet. They had only unlocked their magic recently where she had her magic for about two months now.

She can see why everyone in the guild all said that he is the closest to becoming their next S Class mage.

"I… can still do it!"

"Now _that's_ the spirit." He gave her a wicked grin that got chills running up and down her spine. She is so going to feel this for the entire week.

Nevertheless, she cannot argue with the results his training brings about. He is not like the benevolent Master Makarov who would hold her hand and slowly guide her along her magic training. Elden would literally throw her into a pit of hellfire and told her to climb out of there herself if it means allowing her to learn faster.

The threat to your life is always the biggest encouragement for you to learn in the fastest way possible, he said. She is starting to wonder if he is the demon instead.

Within a week of him taking over Master Makarov in training her, her demon arm disappeared. She had finally managed to get a good enough handle on her magic to let her demon arm appear and disappear at will. She could still remember the moment she first managed it. She had jumped in joy and hugged Elden so tightly that she nearly suffocated him.

She remembered when she walked back to the guild with him without wearing the cloak, displaying her normal-looking right arm for all to see. The guild cheered for her and she never felt so happy before ever since her parents' untimely demise.

So this is Fairy Tail. Her new family. Nakama.

She likes the sound of that.

* * *

 _"Shopping?"_

The look of utter disgust on his face is enough to make her laugh out loud. During the time they had spent together in private with him teaching her about magic, they had become fast friends. He actually talked to her, unlike what her other guild mates described about him. She is the only one right now who he will willingly hold a conversation with. Elfman and Lisanna are a close second.

"Master gave me some spare cash to get some new clothes for Elfman and Lisanna too." She waved the money in front of his face. "Cos, well, you can see the state of our current clothes. The holes we keep patching up are starting to fall apart."

She is surprised that their tattered clothes even lasted that long. No matter how she tried to keep sewing the holes on their clothes they just kept falling apart. Master Makarov's gift is really a godsend.

"So? Go shop on your own." He grumbled as he continued to read his book while floating on his invisible barriers, looking as if he was lying on an invisible reclining chair.

"We want to treat you to a meal as well." She told him bluntly. "For everything you have done for us."

"There's no need." He replied just as bluntly. "If you want, then cook something nice tonight. You cook better than 90% of the chefs outside anyway."

"Really?" She asked him in surprise. "That good?"

"Have you ever compared your cooking with those outside food?" He raised an eyebrow in her direction. "You should when you have the chance. Why else do you think I keep coming back every night to eat the dinner you cooked? I used to eat out all the time."

"Oh my, you sure know how to compliment and flirt with a girl, El. Didn't know that you have it in you. Why? Interested in me?" She teased and watched him nearly choke on air in a comical manner, nearly dropping the book he was reading. Yes, the big bad Aegis of Fairy Tail, the unbreakable shield that is Elden Tyrell is actually susceptible to tease. Who knew? Certainly not the rest of the guild. Only her.

"You will be the death of me. I just know it." He grumbled as he quickly flipped through his book, obviously embarrassed at what she just said.

"El, the book is upside down."

She burst out laughing at his reaction this time.

* * *

"How's this?"

She asked his opinion for the umpteenth time, her hands holding on to different types of clothes that had caught her attention.

"Nice."

"You said the same for everything!" She accused him with a finger. This… this... **_woodblock!_**

"You look nice in whatever you wear anyway." He yawned as he sat down on a nearby stool of the clothing store they are at. "Just pick whatever catches your eye and let's get a move on."

"I look nice in whatever I wear? Hmmm, you _sure_ you don't have a thing for me, El?" She wagged a suggestive eyebrow at him upon hearing what he said. He is really too easy to tease and his reactions are always so fun to watch.

He didn't give her a reply this time, instead burying his face in a book he brought along so that she couldn't see his face. However, the edge of his ears are redder than tomatoes.

Too easy to tease.

Knowing that she has to let up on the teasing lest she accidentally breaks him, she continues to look through the clothes on display. Elfman and Lisanna are somewhere here in this large store as well. It is the largest clothing store Magnolia has to offer and the prices are pretty reasonable too. Most of their guildmates shopped for clothes here if they ever need it.

The few months of having to hide a demon arm had her enough of hiding her body in shame. Learning how to control her Take Over had made her learn how to be confident in her looks as well. She could never thank Master Makarov and Elden enough for helping her learn how to control her Take Over because of that. Because of them, she grew to be more confident. She had grown to accept herself for what she truly is.

She is Mirajane Strauss, there is no doubt about that. She is no demon. She is someone who has defeated demons. She can harness the power of demons.

Like her father used to say, to be happy, you have to love what you are no matter what you may be. True love is to accept what is within than to judge one based on their exterior.

Fairy Tail didn't judge her with prejudiced eyes simply because she had a demon arm, not even the unpleasant Laxus even if his words are unkind. On the contrary, most of the guild members found it cool that she can harness the power of a demon.

She wants a total makeover to mark this turning point in her life. She wants to change her appearance. She wants to wear something that shows how proud and confident she is of herself, that she no longer has to hide who she is because she was afraid of how she looks. Just what would be a good fit for her?

A certain set of clothes caught her eye. It is dark purple in colour, her favourite colour. Not only that, it fits what she is finding for. It may be a little revealing, but honestly she could care less. She's not one to shy away from exposing some skin. In fact, she _wants_ her new trademark attire to expose some skin.

She checked the price tag. It is on discount, probably because hardly anyone likes to wear such gothic looking and revealing clothes nowadays. The store probably just wants to clear these out as soon as possible.

However, to her, it is the perfect attire to mark this important moment of her life, this important moment where she finally conquered her inner demons and is finally able to embrace who she truly is.

It is perfect.

Now, she really wants to hurry up and wear this just to see what reaction she can tease out of Elden.

* * *

He gave her new attire such a scathing look that she might have mistaken his magic to be able to set her clothes on fire with just a glance. She put her hands on her hips and held her head up high, daring him to challenge her fashion sense. He has no right to speak considering that he basically has a few copies of his standard attire. His clothes are _all_ the same. He has **_no_** fashion sense.

" _Why_." He took in a deep breath as he facepalmed. "Are you wearing… **_that_**."

"What? I thought it looked nice on me." She looked at herself before looking back up at him. "Besides, weren't you the one who told me that I look nice regardless of what I wear?"

"It's revealing." He told her in that blunt manner that she had grown used to. "And our guild is full of perverts. Our guild master is one."

"So? Let them see for all I care." She flipped her ponytail backwards in a dramatic manner. Another gentle touch to her new look. Instead of letting her hair down like when she first came to Fairy Tail, she now ties it up into a ponytail. New start, new look, new her.

"Whatever." He accepted his defeat and continued to read his book. "Do what you want. Don't say I didn't warn you. See if I care."

"Awww, you do care!" She leaned down and shoved her face right in front of his just to see his face turn red within a second. She wasn't disappointed. His eyes are looking at anywhere and everywhere but at her.

Oh, she is revealing her cleavage for him to see from how she is leaning down in this new outfit. No wonder he is so embarrassed.

This is so fun.

"Why? Enjoying the view?" She teased once more as she purposely used her hands to push up her still growing breasts in a suggestive manner. The sight of him growing even redder had her laughing so uncontrollably that she is now rolling on the floor in laughter. Her stomach hurts just by thinking about his reddening face!

"I'm leaving." He gritted his teeth and started to walk out, the blush never quite leaving his face. Uh oh.

"Hey hey, I'm just pulling your leg." She quickly smothered her laughter and grabbed onto his arm. She waves a smaller wad of cash in front of his face.

"Since I still have some leftover from my share of allowance, why don't I treat you to something? Pick anything you like within my budget. Your wardrobe needs some diversity, seriously."

"My fashion sense is _fine_." He grumbled. She didn't relent, instead gently pulling at his dark blue jacket with a look of contemplation. It looks very old, torn, and tattered. Why hasn't he got around to replace it? He has the money.

"How about I choose a new jacket for you?"

"No." He replied immediately, almost to the point of snapping at her. Her flinch might have been a little too obvious.

"This jacket is… important." He said as he looked away from her awkwardly. "I'm not going to replace it unless I cannot wear it anymore."

"Is it from Laxus?" She made a bold guess. She heard from the guild members that he and Laxus were very close. If there's anything that could make Elden view this jacket as important, it is probably a gift to him from somebody close to him.

He gave a slight nod.

"Then at least let me help you sew the holes properly. I mean, seriously, look at this." She lifted up one end of the jacket where an attempt in sewing some holes in it was made. Elden probably got himself into all sorts of dangerous situations as one of the most powerful mages in Fairy Tail. It's a wonder his jacket is not in tatters yet. Strong he may be, there's no way his barriers could possibly defend him from everything when he is just one person against the world.

He really needs to have more friends by his side. She doesn't know how to repay his kindness or if it is possible to even fully repay the kindness he showed her, but she can start by being his friend. His best friend.

He gave her a skeptical look.

"Haven't you noticed? I'm good at patching things up." She pressed on. If there's anything she can do to help this kind person who had helped her so much when she was at her lowest, she wants to do it.

"I swear, if you ruin this-"

"I won't. Trust me."

The surety in her voice must have convinced him seeing how he had relented in the end. Her siblings found them at this moment, showing her the new clothes they picked out for themselves.

She smiled. This is a new chapter in their lives and it is looking to be a bright one.

* * *

"Mira, my dear. How've you guys been doing?"

She quickly walked over to Master Makarov the moment he called her over to his office. Her siblings followed after her as well. Elden is… _somewhere_ in the guild building. She will locate him later.

"We are doing well, Master!" She chirped back happily and she saw the old man giving them a big smile as well. He patted her on the shoulder with a warm hand and gestured for them to take a seat opposite him.

"That puts me at ease. How has Elden been treating you guys? I see he has been a little more talkative ever since he took you guys in."

"El is nice!" Lisanna spoke up cheerily and her words were parroted by Elfman. "He just doesn't like to talk so everybody thinks he's scary when he's not!"

"What Lisanna said." Mira added when Makarov turned to look at her.

"Well, I'm glad that you guys think this way then. I'm sure you heard a little about his past with my wayward grandson by now?"

The three of them nodded.

"Then this keeps things simple." Makarov continued to talk as they listened intently. "If it's not too much trouble, I would like you three to continue to befriend Elden. I was worried about the impact the fallout he had with my grandson until he found you three. You three are the only people he really talked to now that he is not on talking terms with the Thunder God Tribe. If it's possible, I want you three to help him to learn how to socialise more, to have him interact more with the guild."

"Okay!" Lisanna agreed on their behalf as she pumped a fist into the air. "Our very first mission!"

"Yup! Your very first mission!" Makarov smiled at Lisanna.

After talking for a short while, mostly with Makarov asking about their current situation and trying to find out if there's anything he needs to know about them and how they are fitting in, he shooed them out from his office, claiming to have paperwork to finish. Lisanna and Elfman both gave him doubtful looks because of the familiar smell of alcohol coming from under his office desk, but ran out anyway in favour of playing with their new friends. Mirajane stayed.

"Yes, Mira? Is there anything I can help you with?"

"Uhm, I…" She frowned a little as she closed the office door, not really knowing how to phrase her question properly as her gaze travelled to her feet.

 _You don't know El. You don't know what he's really capable of. You don't know who he really is._

"El… He… What's he like before we came here? I mean, I heard a bit from people like Cana, but I want to hear your opinion as well. El and I, we talked a little in private when he was escorting us to Magnolia. It's very different from how people described him. Everybody told me very different things when I asked about him, especially Laxus. I… I just…"

She looked back up at Master Makarov.

"Which El is the real El?"

 _"I'm kind of jealous of you, you know? Of everyone I know in Fairy Tail. You guys at least have family."_

 _"I… I don't remember who I really am, at least not fully. When my magic first awakened it was when I forgot who I am. I cannot remember who I was, what I did, where I lived."_

 _"The fear of not knowing who you really are, I understand it better than you do. I was a literal nobody until I regained a part of my memories_ _and made new ones with people who mattered."_

The conversation she had with him in that inn after the night where he told her with confidence that she isn't a demon rang clearly in her head. For some reason, she has a feeling that she had seen a side of Elden that nobody had seen. Is Elden the kind boy that had spoken to her that morning, or is he the dangerous mage Laxus said? The one who can become a monster? Is he the anti-social recluse that Gray claimed? The grumpy bookworm Levy mentioned? The super strong mage Natsu wants to challenge? The person Cana views as her biggest competitor for the next S Class trial?

Makarov's gaze softened.

"What did El tell you?"

"That… he's jealous of me having a family, a real one. That he doesn't remember a thing about his past and never managed to remember fully about himself from when he first met you till now. That he knows better than anyone the fear of not knowing who you really are."

"That is all true." Makarov nodded solemnly. "El is… a unique child. Had always been too smart, too wise, too mature, always too ready to help despite needing help himself. He kept giving off the vibe that he never belonged anywhere, like he's subconsciously distancing himself from everyone because he feels like he doesn't belong. It was a lot worse when I first found him."

"B-But he told me a guild is a family! We are nakamas!" She exclaimed. "Then why-"

"That's why I said he's a unique child." Makarov explained patiently. "He loves this guild just like you and I, yet he feels like he's an outsider infringing on us for reasons unknown. Maybe he's not being forthcoming with what he really remembered. Maybe it's the lack of memories that is holding him back. We don't know. But we can draw our conclusions about him from his magic. Many scholars believed that magic that naturally manifests in mages is the truest reflection of who you are. Elden's magic is one of natural manifestation. His magic is-"

"Barrier Magic." She gulped. "It keeps people away."

"Precisely." Her guild master nodded. "When I first found him, he was very close to getting himself killed from a bunch of bandits that had murdered his parents as well. If his magic did not manifest when it did, I would not have been able to save him in time. Elden would have been dead. Naturally occurring magic truly reflects the mage's state of mind at the point in time they made magic a reality. In Elden's case, he had the desire to protect himself by keeping himself away from others. It was to survive. Whether that was a cause of his lost memories or something else was the culprit remains unseen. In fact, we were surprised that he remembered anything. Porlyusica was doubtful that he could recall anything and she's rarely wrong. Although in this case, we were glad that she's wrong."

"That state of mind when he awoke his magic, the desire to keep people away, it lingers after so long?"

"Theoretically, it shouldn't." Makarov scratched his chin in thought. "But this is magic we are talking about. Magic is connected to our emotions because our emotions are what make magic possible. At least, that is what I believe in. Although rare, there _are_ cases of people growing insane from their own magic. Elden awakening his magic in such stressful conditions might have some serious mental impacts that we never foresaw, much less a child his age back then. Especially when he woke up only to realise he doesn't know who he is. I'm sure that has scarred him mentally, it's just a matter of how big that scar is and whether it had gone away."

"I… see." She mumbled as she tried to digest it all.

"The fact is, Elden rebuilt his identity from scratch after I brought him here. It was how he recovered and started to talk more with members of the guild. Being part of Fairy Tail and the Thunder God Tribe had always been a part of his identity. Now that he left the Thunder God Tribe, it's like his part of his identity had been erased. He is regressing back to when I first found him and I really do not wish for him to go back to that state. It is not pretty, what he had to go through. Can you help me, Mira? All I ask is for you and your siblings to spend some time everyday to talk to him. Can you do that? To be his friend?"

"Of course I will!" She replied quickly. "It's just, uh, I was curious about his past."

"And it is not my place to tell you unless he allows me to. I have already revealed more than I need to, in fact." Makarov cleared his throat before giving her a suggestive wink. "Why? Interested in him? I must say that you and El have been getting _really_ chummy with each other as of late."

 _"It's nothing like that!"_ She shouted back in embarrassment. There's _no way_ she's interested in him in this manner!

"Sure, sure, whatever you say."

"Master!"

* * *

"So, I heard you and El are going on missions together?"

"Yeah, your point?" She looked at Erza with a bored look on her face. This tin-can really needs to lighten up. Why is she always so serious anyway? Live a little!

"How strong is he?"

"Stronger than you, that's for sure." She snorted as she continued to eat her meal in the guild hall. Now that Master Makarov finally allows her to go on missions, she is starting to bring in a steady stream of income to feed her and her siblings. And when her siblings can finally go on missions with her as well, all the better. Once they save up enough, they can finally not impose on Elden and move out of his apartment. They all felt bad for causing him to sleep in his hammock for months now. He probably doesn't even remember how sleeping in his own bed felt like.

"Not like you are any better." Erza shot back, probably feeling a little hurt at her blunt statement. Eh, like she cares. It's the truth. El is just that strong. Suck it up and move on.

"Oh? You think you are better than me? You want to try, tin-can? I'll take you on!" She challenged brashly as she stood up and put a leg on top of the bench she was sitting on with a loud bang.

 _"T-Tin-can?"_ Erza sputtered out of shock. "Don't insult my armour! You… You… You…"

Erza's face flushed a bright red as she pointed a finger at her while shaking uncontrollably in anger. Mira merely leaned forward, daring Erza to come up with a witty comeback.

"S-Skimpy whore!"

"That's it? That all you can do?" She threw the phrase Elden always used to mock her during their training sessions back at Erza. " _Skimpy whore?_ At least I'm proud of my body unlike you! Come on, aluminium foil! At least throw a better insult! Don't tell me that your brain is full of rust as well, scrap metal?"

Erza shouted a war cry as she drew the sword on her waist and slashed at her in rage. Mira ducked as she activated her Satan Soul. She may not be able to do a Full Body Take Over yet, but she is close. Even Master and Elden had all told her that her rate of progress is astonishingly fast.

Her demonic arm that she used to be so ashamed of easily blocked the sword without a scratch. She grinned. This is a good time as any to see where she truly stands in this guild in terms of power. Erza joined Fairy Tail two years before her. If she can beat her, then she can prove that she is a valuable member of the guild as well. She can get her guild to recognise her for her own strength.

"Bring it, tomato hair! I'll _crush_ you!"

"ARGH! DIE, BITCH!"

* * *

"So, you want to explain to me what possessed you to fight with _Erza_ of all people? I'm very sure you did not mess with her strawberry cake by mistake, so what was it?"

Elden crossed his arms in front of her and she looked away from him in a sheepish manner as she sat on the chair in his apartment. Lisanna is helping to disinfect the wounds she got from her big fight with Erza, making her hiss in pain every once in a while when Lisanna accidentally used a little more strength than necessary.

"I called her a tin-can. She called me a skimpy whore. Things just got out of control from there." She admitted truthfully.

What she didn't admit to him was that the guild brawl she and Erza started was actually hella fun! She can see why the guild does that on a daily basis. Now she wants to be a part of it every single time it happens!

Elden continues to stare at her, as if already seeing through her lie.

"Tch. Your punch was weak. No wonder she beat you."

"What?" Her head snapped back up in indignation at his words. "She didn't _beat_ me! Our fight wasn't finished!"

"Yes, just _admit_ that she beat you." He shut her up just as quick. Without warning, he suddenly threw a punch right at her face that got her to close her eyes in fear at how sudden and fast it was. She could even feel a violent breeze brushing across her face from the speed of it. She reopened her eyes when she didn't feel any pain, spotting his fist less than a centimeter away from her face.

" _That_ , is how you throw a _proper_ punch. Next time you pick a fight with her, _this_ is how you punch her."

A large grin started to form on her face.

"El! Please don't encourage Mira-nee!"

"Lisanna. It's either that or people start to think that I'm a bad teacher which by the way, I'm not. Mira is technically my student. I would not allow anyone to think that the teaching skills of the Aegis of Fairy Tail is _subpar_. I have a reputation to maintain. If Mira cannot win a measly guild brawl, there's no way she can win her battles in higher level missions."

"I knew I could count on you!" Mira slapped Elden on his back for, well, having her back. "Thanks, El!"

He grumbled irritatedly.

"You'll be the death of me."

It didn't take long for her to put into practice what Elden taught her that night. In fact, she swaggered into the guild hall the next morning, easily spotting Erza eating her strawberry cake for breakfast in her usual spot and a few bruises on her here and there from their fight yesterday.

"Hey, tin-can!"

She threw a mean right hook like how Elden showed her to do the night before.

She didn't win that fight too, but Erza sported an easily visible black eye for the rest of the week.

That was the official start of her rivalry with Erza.

* * *

"El! How's it?! How's it?!"

She waved him over the moment she spotted him returning to the guild with the rest of the S Class candidates. She knows Elden is crazily strong but she wants to be doubly sure!

Elden gave her a smirk, his hands in his usual place in his pockets. That's all she needs to know.

"Until Master makes the official reveal, I cannot reveal anything other than the fact that I went up against Gildarts."

 **"GILDARTS?!"** The entire guild turned their heads towards him as one, jaws dropped in surprise.

"How unlucky!"

"How are you even alive?!"

"How many bones did you break?!"

"Are you a ghost?!"

" _What_ ghost? I'm alive!"

She smiled. Elden is a lot more talkative now. At least he talks to the other members of the guild every now and then. Levy isn't afraid to ask him directly to lend her his books anymore, for one. She and her siblings had managed to bring Elden out of his shell a little, something which they count as an achievement.

"Guess this means the official reveal is now meaningless, eh, Master?" Gildarts grinned at Makarov, who merely shrugged. Gildarts clapped his hands once to get the guild to keep quiet, which they all did. They are all eager to know who their newest S Class mage is, if there is indeed someone who passed that legendary hellish test this year.

Everyone is eager except for her, that is. She already knew when he replied to her question. There's no doubt in her mind that he could do it when he first left to take the S Class Trials.

"May I present to you your newest S Class mage, Elden Tyrell!"

Called it.

* * *

" _S Class,_ El! S Class!" She teased him mercilessly as he rolled his eyes, still floating in the air as he lay down on his floating barriers to read his new book. "Hey! Bring us out for an S Class mission soon, yeah?"

"When you and your siblings can complete an A Class mission _perfectly_ , then I might consider it."

"You said it!" She pointed a finger at him in case he retracted his words. "Elfman! Lisanna! We are going on a mission right now!"

"What? Now?"

"NOW!" She hollered at her siblings from across the guild hall. "This is our only chance to experience an S Class mission! El said it! If we complete an A Class mission perfectly he will bring us out on an S Class mission!"

"Wait, what? Bring me along too!" Natsu yelled.

"No! Bring me! EL! ME!" Gray shouted even louder.

"No." Elden shot that idea down even quicker.

 **"WHY NOT?!"**

"The last time I went on a mission with _you_." He pointed at Natsu. "You barbequed two hundred and fifty six cows. And _you_ , Gray, the last time I went with you on a mission I had to handle a hundred and eight complaints about your indecent state of dress. No way in hell I'm taking you guys along for an S Class quest."

The two of them hung their heads in defeat.

"Hey, cheer up! I will give you a full verbal report of what going on an S Class quest feels like when we returned! Muahaha!" She cackled evilly as Natsu and Gray both scowled at her. "Elfman! Lisanna! Hurry! To the board we go! We need to choose our mission!"

* * *

"Ta-da!" She did a peace sign with her fingers and held it up smugly in front of his face. "Mission success! _Perfect_ completion! Five star rating!"

"Yay. Good job." He said dryly as he continued to read his book in his hammock without looking up at her. "Now go and shower. The three of you are stinking up the place."

She forcefully placed her right hand still doing the peace sign right between his face and his book and wriggled her fingers cutely just to see him get annoyed, enjoying his face turning into a scowl as he tried to swat her hand away as she flapped her demon wings and hovered in the air beside him.

"Mira. I'm just about to get into the good part."

"Here!" She shoved a paper bag at him. He looked at it, then at her. She nodded at him happily, encouraging him to take it.

"This is-"

"The remuneration for the job request to escort us here." She told him truthfully. "I know our living expenses from staying with you are more or less covered by the guild and you probably won't accept it anyway, but this, we insist."

"Mira-"

 _"We insist."_ She emphasised. "We would take you out to eat but you seem to enjoy my cooking more than you eat outside, so I'll cook up a feast later! How about it?"

He flipped another page of his book, pretending as if he doesn't care about what she does when in fact he does.

"Fine by me."

"Anything in particular that you like?"

"Not really. I pretty much eat anything you cook."

"Then that settles it!" She said cheerfully as she hovered above him parallelly. "Get ready for the Mira Special!"

* * *

It's been almost a year since she came to Fairy Tail, since she's been saved by Elden.

"Our new home! We have a home!"

Seeing Elfman's and Lisanna's happy faces made her 100% sure that it was worth spending that much money to buy their new home. She knows how much having a physical home means to them. She feels the same way too. That feeling of loss when they saw their home razed to the ground by those nasty villagers was something she doesn't want to see her siblings experience again.

So, the moment they were sure they wanted this place, they bought everything this place was built on, even the land itself. It cost them quite a hefty sum and they almost used up all their savings, but this is now theirs.

"It's a nice place." Elden commented as he looked around. "Has a homely feel to it."

"Couldn't have found it without your help." She grinned at him with her hands on her hips. "Thanks a lot, El!"

"Yeah, thanks El!"

"Don't mention it." He waved it off as he continued to inspect the place.

"You know, you can come over to visit whenever you like!" She offered. "I'm sure my food is so good that you only eat what I cook nowadays. That's it! You should come over for dinner whenever we are around!"

"Now, there's-"

"I-It's not manly to refuse!" Elfman, in a rare bout of courage, exclaimed out loud.

"Uh huh. Besides, Mira-nee's cooking is really good! You said so yourself!" Lisanna added.

"If you feel bad about eating here all the time, you can help share the grocery cost a little." She proposed, knowing how particular Elden is at not liking the notion of imposing on others although he never minded if others imposed on him. If letting him share the cost can persuade him to open up a little and come over to visit regularly, so be it.

He mulled over her proposal for a few seconds.

"Sure."

* * *

"S Class! It's my turn to become S Class!"

Before she knew it, the next S Class Trials were around the corner. Even when she had only just joined the guild two years ago, she had swiftly climbed up the ranks and became one of the strongest mages around. Even the likes of Master and Gildarts were surprised at her progress. Only Elden showed indifference because he was the one who tutored her. He knew her strength and potential.

"Shut up, hag. _I'm_ the one who is going to become S Class."

Mira narrowed her eyes at the annoying redhead as said redhead did the same. Their staring contest was only broken up when Elden got in the way of the two.

And then proceeded to drag her out of the guild by the back of her blouse.

"H-Hey! El! Let me go! I can walk on my own!"

"If you want to be S Class, then you need to train more instead of having petty spats with Erza. Don't waste your time on useless endeavours."

" _Petty_ spats?! I'm not petty! I'll show you what's petty-"

He flung her forward in the isolated training field that they always use and she quickly took a few steps to steady herself before looking back at him with a scowl. Judging from that smug looking grin on his face, he's enjoying this.

"Hey." She stated with a predatory grin as she cracked her knuckles and started to do her stretches. "If I can beat you right here, right now, does it mean that I can be S Class right away?"

"Careful there. You are starting to sound a lot like Natsu."

"I TAKE IT AS A YES THEN!"

She threw the first punch as she did a full transformation with Satan Soul in less than a second. The battlelust of her inner demons rose as she quickly shot her spells at him without letting up. This is Elden she is facing. He is a tough nut to crack.

She's also curious to see where they stand now in terms of power. Had she surpassed him?

It's time to find out.

* * *

"Ah, ah! It hurts! It hurts!"

"I _told_ you to stop. You didn't listen."

He piggybacked her all the way to her house because she went too far in their spar and overexerted herself. She can barely move a finger right now and she is hurting all over.

She still considered it a win because Elden is also exhausted. Otherwise, he would have flown her back home instead of carrying her in a piggyback.

This is also a perfect time to tease him.

"Hey, you are enjoying this, aren't you?" She leaned closer to his ear and whispered in it. "Touching my thighs and feeling my boobs pressing on your back? What a sly move, El. I didn't know you had it in you."

"So don't give anyone the chance to do so by not overexerting yourself next time, stupid." He shot back. Huh, guess he had developed some resistance to her teasing.

Time for the one-hit-KO.

"Could it be…" She leaned her face _really_ close to his and she knew she still had it in her when his face blushed up a storm once more at the super close contact. She even purposely made sure her breaths could be felt by his ear as she whispered into it from behind. "You…"

He blushed even redder. This is so fun! Ahahaha!

"Stop it." He jostled her, making her hiss in pain when that triggered a reaction from her overly sore muscles. "People will get the wrong idea."

"No, seriously. There are a ton of cute and pretty girls in the guild. Is there seriously **_no one_** that caught your attention? Not even _one_?" She took great glee in teasing him further as he watched his face nearly producing steam. Just look at how red his neck is! "Hey, hey! Do you need me to be your wingman? Elfman and Lisanna can help too! Promise! Who caught your eye? Cana? As long as it is not the tin-can I'm fine with it! Or is it Levy?! Oh gosh! The both of you are bookworms and she often borrowed books from you! Perfect!"

"Mira." He said in an exasperated tone. "Please do not spread baseless rumours."

"I can make sure that the rumours won't be baseless soon!"

 _"Mira."_

"Fine, fine." She sighed dramatically. "Seriously, you are such a bore."

"Har har. Yet a certain goth demon told me that I'm her best friend."

"That shows how good a friend I am right? I can actually put up with such a boring person like you and still call you my best friend! Can I use that to bribe you to put in a good word for me to Master during the S Class Trial? Pretty pleeeeaseee?"

"No."

"Or how about if you happen to be the one testing that stupid tin-can, you make her exams super hard so that she cannot pass! You know, the bro code! Come on, for a bro! We are bros for life!"

"That is a bigger no."

"Come on El! For a bro! For your best friend! Bros for life!"

He pointedly ignored her as he took out the spare key she and her siblings had given him so that he could come over whenever he wished. They still kept the spare key to his apartment as well. They trust each other completely. Using the key, he opened the door to her home.

"Home sweet home!" She cheered as she put her hands up in the air happily. "Come on El! Say it with me! Elfman and Lisanna do it all the time too whenever we get back! **Home sweet home!** "

"Careful. Don't move around like that." He grumbled. "I nearly dropped you back there."

"El~ Where's your sense of adventure?"

"I rather keep my sense of preservation."

He closed the door behind them and gently let her down on a chair in her living room. From the looks of it, Elfman and Lisanna still haven't returned from the guild. She hissed slightly in pain as she tried to stand up on her own feet and ignore the pain her muscles are giving her. After some stretching and walking one round around the living room, she deemed herself passable to be able to walk to her bathroom on her own power.

"I'm going to take a shower! Make yourself comfortable!" She removed her hair tie and let her long white hair down completely as she disappeared into her bathroom, only to poke her head out to tease him again. "I'm not going to close the door! So don't peek!"

His face turned red again as he gave her an embarrassed scowl. She decided to push her luck further.

"Or you can join me if you want! I don't mind!"

She managed to dodge the book he threw at her in time and continue to let her laughter ring throughout her house, not closing the door to her bathroom just to have him squirm uncomfortably while he waits for her to finish bathing.

Too easy to tease.

* * *

He left! He freaking just up and left like that! Come on, she was just joking when she accused him of breaking the bro code!

"Mira-nee, you are moping."

"I'm **_not_** moping." She insisted. Lisanna gave her a flat look that showed just how much she believed her earlier statement.

"You are, sis." Elfman agreed. "You've been moping ever since El left on the S Class mission. It's been an entire month."

"Yeah, you've been too hard on him with that 'bro code' thing." Lisanna said with an air quote motion of her fingers. "I mean, you can't really expect him to show any bias as a proctor of the S Class Trials. You know that."

"I know! I was just kidding! I didn't expect him to really take an S Class mission that is expected to take up to four months! _FOUR!_ " She held up four fingers while saying that. "But hey! It's not totally my fault! I even offered to tag along! He refused!"

"I don't know, _maybe_ that's because _someone_ is not _competent_ enough to get promoted to **_S Class?_** S Class missions are _very_ difficult. Surely someone as strong as Elden won't want to bring a burden along. Oh, **_who_** could that be?"

Even without looking, Mira knew who it was. She did a roundhouse kick when she heard that annoying voice. Fucking Erza.

"Oh ho? Can't accept the _truth?_ " Erza said in a mocking tone as she leapt upwards and landed on the second floor of the guild, looking down at her with a haughty expression. "Can't accept the fact that I'm your better?"

"SHUT UP AND GET YOUR ASS DOWN HERE RIGHT NOW TIN-CAN! I'LL FIGHT YOU!"

"Mira-nee! Stop picking a fight!"

"Ohohoho, how can I?" Erza inspected her nails in a carefree manner and Mira wants nothing but to wipe that smug look off her face right now. "It would be plain bullying if an **_S Class_** mage beats you into a pulp. Right, Lisanna?"

"Erza! Please stop picking on Mira-nee!"

"GET DOWN HERE RUSTY ASS!"

"Why don't _you_ get _up_ here? Oh wait, you failed the S Class exams! My bad, my bad! I forgot you are not _strong_ enough to climb up the second floor! It is reserved only for us **_S Class_** mages! Like yours truly!"

"YOU-!"

"Elden _personally_ acknowledged my strength, you know? He was my proctor." Mirajane growled as that red-headed bitch continued to taunt her. "If you failed, guess you are not strong enough for him to acknowledge your strength! Too bad, too bad, life's so sad~"

"GAH! YOU ARE SO DEAD, TIN-CAN! LET ME GO ELFMAN, LISANNA! I'LL SHOW HER-"

"Mira!"

 **"WHAT?!"** She snapped at whoever dared to get between her and her beating Erza into a bloody mess. Her head swiveled towards the entrance of the guild hall where she heard the voice came from.

Oh crap, it's El. He's back so soon?!

"Is that…"

She spotted what her siblings spotted as well. A small little girl with hair in almost the same shade of white as theirs hid herself timidly behind Elden, shivering in fright. She is almost in tears.

Elden wasn't very amused at how she shouted at them because of the little girl's reaction.

"Ah… Ah…"

"Hey hey, relax. She's alright. You just caught her in a bad mood, that's all." Elden is obviously trying his best to calm the little girl down and preventing her from crying. It's almost like she is on the verge of an anxiety attack or something. "Mira's not scary at all."

"Yeah, that female gorilla's not scary at all. Come on in." Erza quipped from above.

"SHUT UP TIN-CAN!"

"Ah… Ah… WAHHHHH!"

Mira facepalmed. Fuck. Fuck this. Fuck Erza. Fuck her. Whose fault is this now that the little girl is crying?

The glare Elden sent their way got them to straighten their backs automatically, even Erza when she is now already an S Class mage like him. An angry Elden is a scary Elden. He can really become a monster.

"You two." He pointed at them with a finger before pointing downwards at the wailing girl clutching at his pants in fear like a lifeline. "Fix this. **Now**."

Fuck. El's mad.

 _Really mad._

* * *

"Yukino, eh? That's a nice name!"

Yukino curled herself up and hid herself behind Lisanna. Mira can only sigh. It's all Erza's fault that Yukino now has such a bad impression of her.

It's all that tomato hair's fault.

Elden had found the girl in some unnamed woods after he completed his mission and was making his way back. The girl is running a slight fever and is severely malnourished. She doesn't know what Yukino's past is but like them and most people in Fairy Tail, it probably isn't pretty.

Elden had asked for their help in getting the little girl to settle in since the fact that Yukino is a girl is a little inconvenient for him to take care of her. Elden is still in a meeting with Master Makarov regarding Yukino's circumstances and Lisanna had gently coaxed the little girl and convinced her to allow Lisanna to help wash her clean and change her clothes into cleaner ones. Yukino is distrustful of others and the only person she fully trusts seems to be Elden. Elden had bought some change of clothes for Yukino on the way back. According to him, Yukino was dressed in bloodied rags when he found her and very severely malnourished.

The thought of it made her blood boil. What kind of animal even dares to lay a finger on such a small innocent child?!

She and Erza had unanimously decided to put off their feud in favour of helping Yukino settle in. Right now, Erza is warding off the curious members who have no concept of personal space so that they don't spook and frighten Yukino any further. Yukino is extremely jumpy without Elden by her side and is obviously a victim of mental trauma. She can tell the signs. She was once a victim too.

"My name is Mirajane. Mi-ra-jane." She said as gently as she could in an attempt to get Yukino to open up to her. Nope, not working. She is still hiding behind Lisanna. It seems that the only person who seemed to gain a semblance of Yukino's trust thus far that is not Elden is Lisanna.

There was a low growl emitting from Yukino's stomach. Did El not feed her?

"Did you even eat anything?"

She nodded her head meekly.

"Elden gave me a lot to eat! I… I… just don't want to trouble E-Elden any further… So I said nothing when I got hungry again..."

"Hey, it's good." She patted Yukino on the head, who, surprisingly enough, didn't flinch away from her this time. "I'll let you in on a secret! I'm actually a great cook! Wanna see?"

Yukino blinked her large eyes at her.

"Really! Elden comes over to our place to eat all the time because of my cooking skills!"

* * *

She is lucky that she has one redeeming feature that is her cooking skills. Whew. Elden will skin her alive if she is the reason Yukino is still crying by the time he gets back.

Yukino had fallen asleep shortly after she finished the meal she cooked for her. Mira had borrowed the guild's kitchen to whip up a quick and easily digestible meal. It has to be easy on Yukino's stomach since she is obviously malnourished and hasn't eaten properly for days until El found her. There's also the fact that Yukino is running a slight fever.

So porridge it is. Yukino opened up to her the moment she ate the first bite. They had to quickly remind her that the porridge is hot and to take it slow lest she scalded her tongue.

"So she's the child?"

Master and Elden walked into the guild's infirmary where they are at. Yukino is sleeping on one of the beds, knocked out like a light.

"I'll take care of her, Master. I want to take care of her."

That got her and her siblings to look at Elden in surprise. That is not something Elden would say lightly.

"Are you sure, El?" Master Makarov questioned and pointed at her and her siblings. "Yukino is young. She's vulnerable. Raising her would not be easy. It's not the same as helping them to settle in."

"She… Yukino lost _everything_ , Master. If there's anyone who knows the same pain, it's me. I lost everything too until you found me, until Fairy Tail found me. I need to do this. I want to do this."

Ah, so that's why. Almost everybody in Fairy Tail experienced loss one way or the other before coming here. It is why their bonds are so strong, because they know better than anyone the sense of loss. They don't want to lose anybody again now that they have a new family in the form of Fairy Tail. She doesn't know about the rest because most of them are tight-lipped about their past prior to joining Fairy Tail, but El really lost everything before he came here as far as she knew.

He must have seen himself in Yukino.

"I understand if you are apprehensive about having this insensitive dolt raise her by himself, Master." She slung an arm around El's shoulders like a bro. Well, he is her best bro excluding Elfman who is her real bro. A sideway glance allows her to spot the dark circles around his eyes. He must not have caught much sleep and he obviously rushed back to Magnolia.

 _"Are you on my side?_ " He hissed at her. "This is important, don't mess around!"

She ignored him and merely completed the second half of her sentence.

"But it will be fine if we help too, right?"

Everyone stared at her as if Christmas had come early.

"Y-Yeah! We can help raise Yukino too! She seems to open up to me really easily!" Lisanna quickly caught on and put forward a valid point. "And there are certain inconveniences if El is to raise Yukino alone because of the gender difference. That would not be a problem for me and Mira-nee!"

"T-That's right!" Elfman added. "I-I can help too! In any way!"

Master Makarov eyed the four of them before giving a soft sigh.

"If you guys are so sure, then fine. This will be the arrangement for now. We will discuss this later after a week or two depending on Yukino's condition. For now, it's late and Yukino needs her rest. I'll get Porlyusica here first thing tomorrow morning to give her a thorough health check. Don't be late."

"Thank you, Master."

Master Makarov waved it off as he quietly exited the infirmary, leaving them alone.

"So, now you are big bro El? El-niisama? Nii-san? Nii-chan?" She leaned her elbow on his shoulder and started her relentless teasing. Elden simply sighed tiredly and rubbed the back of his head with a hand, an action she had gotten used to seeing him do all the time.

"Sorry, but not now, Mira. I'm not in the mood."

Wow, he must be really exhausted.

"Alright, you know what? You go back home right now and _sleep_. You obviously flew back here and overexerted yourself. Weren't you the one who always keeps telling me not to overexert myself? Heed your own advice for once."

"Mira." He said in an exasperated tone as he glanced at the sleeping Yukino. "She-"

"We'll be here all night taking care of her. You trust us, right?"

"I do, but-"

"Blah blah blah na na na na na I cannot hear you _nyeh_ ~" She stuck her tongue out at him and cut him off. Before he could protest, she dragged him out of the infirmary quietly and towards her home.

"I'm going to go back home and grab whatever we need to stay the night at the guild, and so will you. I know you are not going to be able to sleep at home with Yukino like this, so you are coming back here to sleep in the infirmary as well. You go clean yourself up at your own apartment before coming back here to sleep. I will wake you up when Porlyusica arrives tomorrow morning, you can count on it."

He didn't argue nor did he protest. He was too tired to.

She was proven right when he fell asleep the moment his head touches the pillow. He had really worn himself out over Yukino.

She snorted softly as she looked at him snoring away. It is two am in the morning and it is her turn to keep watch. She lit up a dim glow at a corner of the room with a lacrima lamp and quietly picked up Elden's signature jacket, the jacket that is the most important item to him because Laxus was the one who gave it to him.

She shook her head in resignation as she brought out the sewing kit she brought over from home and began to sew the holes in his jacket back together. He is always caring too much about others and cares too little about himself. He can afford to be a little more selfish like her.

But that selfless kindness is what makes him Elden.

What an adorable dork.

* * *

Another two years passed. Some things changed, some didn't.

She now has another sibling in the form of Yukino. She is not a Strauss by blood, but she sure damn well is no matter what anybody else says. She and her siblings had laid claim on her in front of the entire guild when Yukino's addition to the guild became official. From that day onwards, the Strauss siblings increased to four people.

Yukino's presence is good for Elden. Having a younger sibling to take care of gives him a more solid sense of family and Yukino simply adores Elden. Elden started to open up more because he needs to interact more with others through Yukino. Yukino is helping him to make friends again. She is happy for the both of them.

Yukino had also opened up to them soon after she and Elden became her legal guardians. Elden had wanted to raise her himself, but she and her siblings had once lived in the small apartment he called home for months. It is no place to raise a kid like Yukino. She needs the space to run around and have fun and do what children her age do.

She remembered what Elden told her when she first came here, that Fairy Tail has a foster care system for new members who cannot take care of themselves. She remembered how afraid she was of that arrangement because it felt like she and her siblings were imposing on him. He told her not to worry because it will be her turn one day, to extend her hand to someone else who will need her help like how he had done for her and how Master Makarov had done for him.

Looking at Yukino, she felt that her turn had come.

So, she put her foot down and insisted that Yukino lives at _her_ place instead. Her house has a spare room anyway that nobody uses. It might as well be Yukino's. It will also spare Elden the trouble of trying to find a bigger apartment just for Yukino and he comes over to her place for dinner almost everyday anyway. He and Yukino will still see each other very often.

She also became an S Class mage within these two years, finally catching up to him. She can also finally get that annoying tin-can to stop lording the S Class title over her.

Her life was great. Never been better. She's glad that she came to Fairy Tail, glad that she met him, the person who turned her life upside down for the better. Her best friend, her best bro.

So what possessed her to disregard his advice regarding the S Class mission to subjugate The Beast? Because of her blunder, her siblings nearly paid the price with their lives. She is such a failure as a sister and as an S Class mage.

She let out a sound of frustration as she covered her face with her pillow, still lying face down on her bed. It is already eleven in the morning and she is not out of bed yet. Usually by this time she is already in the guild. Elden had gave her a pep talk and got her out of the funk and she, in turn, knocked some sense into her idiotic brother quite literally in case he really guilt trip himself to death. All is well so far, but she still cannot get over her mistake.

Then there is the fact that… that he… Elden, he…

He called her _beautiful_.

She frowned. Was it a slip of the tongue? It has to be, right? And goddammit! Why is she acting like a dumb schoolgirl with a damn pathetic crush?! She's Mirajane Strauss! The Demon of Fairy Tail! Not a lovesick puppy! She's a goddamn punk and she doesn't do pretty!

But then, he did call her a beautiful punk… Even if it was supposed to be just a tease…

It **_WAS_** a tease, right? **_RIGHT?!_**

"Goddammit. I'm so pathetic." She smothered her face into her pillow and screamed into it. What is wrong with her?! Why is she the one blushing now dammit?! That's El's thing! Argh! She doesn't understand a single thing right now!

She needs to go on an S Class mission and go blow up a mountain or something, _pronto_. She will go crazy at this rate.

And fuck, she _just_ screwed up an S Class mission. Better not go on one then. An A Class one, perhaps?

"-ra-nee! Mira-nee!"

"Huh?! What?! Who?! What?!" She jumped up in alarm. Who's calling her?

"Helloooo. Are you there?" Yukino waved her hand in front of her face. Since when did she get on her bed without her realising?

"Mira-nee, are you okay? You've been talking to yourself and then screaming into your pillow for no reason."

"I'm fine." She grumbled as she sank her face into her pillow once more. "What is it?"

Yukino pointed at the clock.

"It's past noon. You need to eat."

Crap. She had been tossing about in her bed for more than an hour?! How?! She could swore it was only 11am a few seconds ago!

"Your face is red. Like _really_ red." Yukino traced her face using a finger before a sly smirk worked its way on her little face. "Thinking of someone? El-niichan?"

"Yukino." She said in a warning tone.

"It's gotten redder!"

"I'm not in love with him or anything dammit!"

"I never said anything like that~" Yukino replied in a sing-song voice, her little hands rubbing against each other in glee.

"Shut. Up." She growled, although she's sure the growing heat on her face isn't helping.

Fuck.

"LISANNA-NEE!" Yukino ran out of her bedroom like a gust of wind. "ELF-NII! YOU GOT TO SEE THIS! MIRA-NEE IS IN LOVE WITH EL-NIICHAN! LOOK HOW RED HER FACE IS! COME LOOK! COME LOOK!"

 **"I AM NOT!"**

* * *

"Ah…."

"Mira-nee and El-nii, sitting on a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G~"

"Shut up, shut upppppppPPPPP AHHHHH" She whined and screamed as she covered her head with a cushion as she lay on the couch, not wanting to see anyone right now. Her sisters aren't helping with how they are constantly teasing her at home, then dropping embarrassing hints and insinuations wherever she and El are seen together, be it in the guild outside or here at home during dinner.

To make things worse, it's like the whole guild is in on it. It's like **_everybody_** knows _except_ for **_him_**.

 _Even worse_ , he didn't even comment a single damn thing about her new makeover. She is starting to wear dresses again. She had started to let her hair down again instead of tying it in a ponytail. To make things _extra obvious_ because he knows how utterly **_dense_** that woodblock can be, she even tied up her bangs in an _upward_ ponytail. Even tried her best to change her behaviour into one that is more… _womanly_. She is sure nobody likes to date a tomboyish thuggish gothic punk, so she changed to get him to notice her.

Yeah, fuck this. She's definitely hopelessly crushing hard on Elden. Fuck. When?! Why?! AHHHHH! He was her best friend! Bros for life! When did this happen without her knowing?!

"Come on now, let's give nee-san a break."

Thank you, Elfman.

"But Elf-niichan! Mira-nee is crushing on El-niichan! We have to help her!"

"Teasing her like that is counterproductive." Elfman pointed out matter-of-factly. "El is skittish enough as it is, it's worse if you make nee-san skittish as well."

"Why? Why is he not saying a damn thing?!" She cannot hold it in any longer and screamed in frustration. "Am I not pretty enough?! Sure as hell am prettier than that tin-c- I mean, ERZA! ARGH dammit!"

Yeah, part of changing for the better includes finally ending her childish feud with Erza and correcting her previously vulgar language. She is still working on the language and sadistic personality, but at least it is a lot better than before!

Just what would it take for him to notice her?! The sky literally dropping down on him?! IS THAT IT?!

Or… could it be… he likes somebody else?

She froze at the thought.

Fuck. Had she bro-zoned him for so long without her knowing that he actually became immune to her womanly charms and liked somebody else instead? Why didn't she realise earlier that she actually is crushing on him since _forever?_ What made her declare that they are 'bros for life'?

She and her stupid brain. Who is it? Cana? Levy? Who? Goddammit it couldn't be _Erza_ , could it?

If it's Erza she's going to screw it all and throw her into the nearest mountain she sees before blowing it up. Fuck everything and anything anyone would say.

Yeah, she's _jealous_. There's no mistaking that extremely sour feeling in her heart. It's jealousy. Just which vixen got her smelly paws on El? WHO?!

"Uh, Mira-nee? Your demon side is starting to show again."

She let out another noise of frustration as she forcefully clamped down on her magic that is leaking everywhere. Right. _Womanly charms_. Surely Elden would prefer a woman that actually acts like a woman, right? She clearly remembered that he once said in passing that he finds women with long hair extremely attractive. It was why she never cut her hair short. She remembered with perfect clarity that when she was once teasing him about the type of women he likes, he mentioned that he tends to notice women who let their hair down. That's why her hair is no longer in a ponytail.

Oh fuck, it _really_ is Erza, is it? Or Cana? The descriptions just fit when it comes to their hair. He had known Cana for very long after all. She joined the guild after he did.

"I'm so screwed." She whimpered as she suddenly sobbed uncontrollably into the cushion she was hugging.

"Mira-nee?"

"El must have liked somebody else! Why else is he not saying anything?!" She sobbed even louder. Damn it! This is all her fault! If only she realised her feelings for him sooner…

"Did he ever tell you that personally?" Elfman asked.

"No, but-"

"Did he ever look at any other women in our guild in a way that suggests any form of romantic interest?" Lisanna questioned.

"Not exactly but there's Erza and Cana and-"

"Then you are just **_overthinking!_** " She didn't even put up any resistance when Yukino's little hands grabbed and rubbed against her cheeks and squished them, forcing her to look at her youngest sibling. "Seriously, why don't you just _ask_ El-niichan himself?!"

She panicked at the thought.

"W-W-What if I screwed up and he said no and-"

"What's the worst that could happen? It's just a no." Yukino deadpanned. "And it's plain obvious that El-niichan likes you a lot as well! You didn't run into his barriers as much as the rest did during the 24 Hours Road Race!"

"B-B-But… _ah…_ " She whimpered at the thought of her trying to confess her feelings to him and covered her face with the cushion once more.

"Tomorrow." Lisanna shook her shoulders with a gleam in her eyes. "Tomorrow you are going to wake up like usual. You are going to be as beautiful as you can be and go to the guild and find El, then you are going to ask him straight in the face if he likes you. Simple?"

"N-No…"

Furthermore, it seems that lately, Elden had been somewhat avoiding her as well with all the rampant teasing going about in the guild about her and him. He's been spending lesser and lesser time with them nowadays with all that teasing going on in the guild. He had always been very shy and didn't like attention. His first instinct is to avoid whatever is creating that attention. Finding him when he doesn't want to be found is going to be such a pain.

"Mira-nee! Man up!"

She made another pitiful whimper.

* * *

She woke up bright and early and took time to dress up. She doesn't want to overdo it in case it scares El off so she went with a somewhat semi-casual look. She hesitates a little if she wants to put on makeup or not. She didn't need it, never really needed to put on makeup because she had always been confident of her looks. Then she remembered that Elden never really looked at those gaudy flamboyant sluts with heavy makeup that they passed by on the streets and wrinkled his nose whenever their perfume was too strong for his liking.

Light makeup at most then.

She sprayed some very mild perfume on her and put on a very light coloured lipstick to give her lips a little more shine. That was all she did for makeup. She combed her hair carefully. She had made sure to wash her hair properly last night so that it wouldn't smell. She had never really cared much about her hair when she was a punk. He had never complained about the smell of her hair before and it may have irked him once or twice when she didn't wash it as frequently because she was being lazy but he never said a thing about smell before. Even if her hair did smell, he may have just been overly polite and not point it out as usual.

After some deep thought, she chose to wear the new maroon dress she bought. It is eye catching, but not overly so. She knows he would prefer that. The dress accentuates her curves that she is so proud of, but does not show too much such that the shy and reserved man would be uncomfortable like how he was when she first bought those tomboyish gothic clothes. She almost decided to wear heels, but decided against it just in case she tripped and made a fool of herself.

She didn't even eat breakfast when she left the house because she's too nervous to even eat. Besides, time is of the essence. Her siblings are not even up yet when she left. She did leave them a note on the fridge that she had left early so that they wouldn't worry about her sudden disappearance.

She reached the guild soon enough. She wasn't the earliest, but he would be here by now because it's Tuesday. She knows he loves the limited edition Tuesday Special the guild's kitchen prepares for breakfast once a week. She knows he likes it enough to actually wake up early to come here to enjoy it before the guild starts to buzz with activity. The Tuesday Special is one of those rare meals that he enjoys that is not her cooking.

This is the best chance for her to catch him before the rest of the guild members started to arrive one after the other.

"Looking for El?" Levy said in a knowing tone which was punctuated with Jet's and Droy's sniggers. The bookworm closed her book shut with an audible snap and walked in her direction, taking a whiff of the air around her.

"What's that for?" Mira asked as she frowned and took a few steps backwards at the intrusion of her personal space.

"Hmm, _perfume_." Levy stated mischievously before her eyes narrowed and honed in on her lips. " _Lipsticks_. What a miracle. _Mirajane Strauss_ actually putting on _makeup_. This is for someone special, I see."

" _Levy_." She warned. This is too embarrassing!

"He ran out through the backdoor just a few seconds before you arrived, just saying." Levy pointed towards said direction with a finger, that mischievous smirk still on her face.

Oh, it is _not_ her imagination this time. He is _definitely_ avoiding her on purpose.

She didn't even say a word to Levy before she's out of the door.

* * *

This is ridiculous.

The guild, the park, _anywhere_. Even the stupid train station. Everytime she thought she had finally found him he would disappear again. She knew he was there just moments before she arrived. She had asked around. This is like an endless game of cat and mouse that they are playing.

He. Is. So. Dead. For making her run around like that.

"Need help?"

Cana's teasing voice could be heard and Mira turned to her left, easily spotting the rest of her guildmates in her generation looking at her and obviously holding in their laughter. Well, minus a few people like those from the Thunder God Tribe and Mystogan. They are hardly around in the guild.

"Mira's in looooooove~"

She punched Happy with that mean right hook he taught her and the blue cat was sent soaring beyond the horizons. Serves him right.

"Maybe you need a little birdy to do a little fortune telling on where he may be~" Cana waved one of her fortune telling cards in front of her as the rest of them openly laughed this time. Yeah, laugh all they want right now. She will get her revenge soon. She's Mirajane Strauss. Only she has the right to tease others.

"Where will he be next?" She got straight to the point with Cana. She is sick of this cat and mouse game they had been playing the entire morning. She didn't even have her breakfast dammit! It's already nearing noon! She's starving!

"Fucking pathetic."

That low growl got everyone to turn around as they saw freaking _Laxus Dreyar_ looking down at them from above the bridge he is standing on. Why is _he_ here?! Since when had he returned?!

"I'm sick of seeing you and that lazyass going about in circles like some lovesick puppies and making my head spin. It's making me want to _puke_. He's on his way to Lake Scilioria, shitheads. You might catch him if you are fast enough. And don't fucking flaunt your magic that much. It's like seeing a wildfire approaching you at midnight, it's fucking _obvious_ that you were coming. You are an _S Class mage_ , act like one and fucking get a handle on your magic."

With that, Laxus disappeared in a bolt of lightning. Everyone just stared in silence at where he was at.

"Did Laxus just…"

"He gave us some pretty good information and advice."

She didn't care. She didn't stay to talk and comment. She immediately transformed using Satan Soul and flew in the direction of Lake Scilioria, making sure to clamp down on her immense magic as much as she can. She should have realised. El had always been sensitive to magic, of course he would sense her coming from a mile away with how she is walking about leaving her magic unchecked. She is a freakin beacon to him with how large her magic reserves are.

This time, she will catch him.

She is done running away.

* * *

"Running away from someone?"

There he is. _Finally_.

"Uh, hi Mira. Uh."

"So you _do_ know that I'm looking for you. You think this is fun?" She growled as she lifted him up by his shirt. She is so _done_ with this ridiculous chase.

"Sorry." He apologised as he looked away from her. "But, I, uh."

They both remained silent, both of them having many thoughts running in their heads in this moment. She slowly let him down as her anger dissipated, her facial features softening. The fault is not his, it is hers. She had always been too pushy while he had always been too afraid to push, always too considerate about others and too kind to refuse any request sent his way.

She had always been a little too selfish. The world doesn't revolve around her. El had no obligations to attend to her every need and listen to her every whim. It was because he is always being so considerate of her that she took his kindness for granted and ended up becoming a selfish girl that kept demanding more from him.

He had really spoilt her.

"Do you remember when we first met?"

"It was dark." He smiled a little at the memory. "I was exhausted having to run all the way to your village from Magnolia after accepting your job request because it stated that it was urgent and the job description looked like the client really needed the help. I didn't even read the client's name until I was halfway along my journey to your village. Apparently the mission had only been posted there for five minutes before I took it the moment I saw it on the board. I still remember that it was raining in Magnolia and it was right after I came back from another difficult solo mission when I saw your job request and I headed back out to find you immediately. And then when I got there I found your house already burnt down days ago. I nearly murdered those pigs back there and flattened the entire village for the witchhunt they did, because what they tried to do to you and your siblings were unforgivable and was a little too similar to what I've been through when I first awakened my magic."

She was surprised by his words.

"You never told me that."

"I didn't? Huh."

"But it did explain your grumpy behaviour when we first met and how annoyed and pissed off about the entire job you had to take. You were already on the brink of exhaustion to begin with." She let out a wistful sigh. "Even then, you tried your best to keep your temper in check even when we pointed our weapons at you. You were really annoyed at the entire situation."

He snorted.

"Like those flimsy sticks could hurt me anyway."

"True." She laughed, remembering the sticks and broken dagger they had pointed at him. "Do you remember the very first words you said when you first met me? I sure did."

"Hey, I'm just a passing mage looking for my runaway client. By the way, do any of you know a certain Mirajane Strauss? She's the runaway client I'm looking for." He let out a chuckle as he recited the exact same words she remembered, word for word. "Yeah, I was definitely not in a good mood back then, but I was definitely relieved to find you and your siblings safe. I knew I found my runaway client when I saw you but I had to be sure."

"So this is revenge? You doing the running this time?"

"Uh…"

"I… I'm not running anymore. I have caught up to you. Thanks to you, I'm strong now." She said surely yet nervously. "Do you know what my father told me when I was young and couldn't understand the hateful stares the villagers would give us? He said this. He said that magic or not, it is important to love yourself. He said that if you have magic, it is a part of you. If you don't have magic, it is also a part of you. To be happy, you have to love what you are no matter what you may be. True love is to accept what is within than to judge one based on their exterior. I didn't understand it back then. I do now."

"He's a wise man."

"Do you know what you told me that night when you forcefully revealed my demon arm in the inn? That arm that I was so afraid of showing anyone?"

"Sorry about that. I…" He facepalmed in embarrassment at the memory and she giggled. "Yeah, I see it now. I'm a jerk."

"What's important is what is within, not what you look like on the outside. That was what you said. It's almost like what my father told me." She recited the words he told her that night by heart. "I still remember what you told me. You didn't know so I'll let you know right now. Your words were what saved me, El. You didn't judge me for my ugly appearance back then. You told me that I wasn't a demon, that I am still Mirajane Strauss. You helped me find my identity. Thank you."

"I didn't do anything special."

"You did, at least for me it was special. You went way beyond what you needed to do despite your own internal struggle with your relationship with Laxus back then. You were troubled, yet you still helped us when you needed help yourself back then. I always liked that about you. You always never hesitate to help others in need in your own way."

"Mira-"

"You gave me strength." She pressed on, her fingers nervously playing with the ends of her hair and her eyes averted his gaze. "Not just the small encouragement you gave me whenever I made progress in my training, but I became physically strong as well because of you. I made S Class because of you. I became who I am because of you. I was ashamed of being called a demon, now I took pride in calling myself a demon. Where I used to be afraid of my own appearance and too scared to even look in the mirror, now I'm proud of my body and what I look like. It's because of you that I can do that."

"You are kind, that's why you are strong. You would have become strong anyway even without me." He said softly as he looked away. "I'm not really needed."

"When can you get it in that thick head of yours that **_you matter?_**!" She let out an uncontrollable outburst as she shook him frustratedly with her hands on his shoulders. "You are not just a random stranger, another passerby, just another guildmate! You- You are my _best friend!_ My _bro for life!_ M-My… You are important to me as well! You are **_special_** to me, in more ways than one! Stop having such low esteem for yourself! It _hurts_ , okay?! It **_hurts_** me whenever you demean yourself as if _you don't matter_ to me or to us! Stop acting like this world will go on as per normal without you because **_it won't!_** At least not to me! So **_stop_** hurting **_me_** already dammit!"

She paused to catch her breath. There goes the chance to act all womanly in front of him. Her punkish side came out again.

"I…" She gulped nervously as she looked down, not daring to look up, her hands still holding onto his shoulders for support. "I don't want you to be just a passing mage looking for his runaway client. The runaway client is not running away anymore. She is right in front of you right now and she is asking you to not pass by just like that. She… She is asking you to _stay_ , she is asking you to… to be more than just…"

She decided to throw all caution to the wind and just say her heartfelt thoughts out loud.

"In the end, that runaway client is nothing but a selfish girl who keeps demanding unreasonable things from you, but that selfish girl is asking you if you would want to be more than just friends, to be more than just bros for life. She wants to continue to cook dinner for you everyday. She wants to continue to sing for you and play the guitar for you every night, the one you bought her on her very first birthday you celebrated with her since they first met. She wants to be the one to say Home sweet home to you whenever you get back from completing another mission. She wants to continue bugging and teasing him for the rest of his life. This selfish girl is asking you if you want to be part of her family! For real this time! So that you no longer need to be alone! S-She wants you to continue to read to her everyday! S-She w-wants y-you to… to… see if you are interested in her! S-She wants you to compliment her looks when she dresses up for you! She wants to explore with you whether there is a possibility of them growing old together and she's very, _very_ , so very **_scared_** that she might have lost this chance for good because she's been too fucking **_dense_** to realise that she is so hopelessly in love with **_you_** ever since you saved her and brought her home to Fairy Tail!"

She broke down and cried as she rested her forehead on his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her and pressed his cheek to hers.

"I'm sorry, Mira. I made you cry. It wasn't my intention."

"Are you going to be just a passing mage?" She asked softly, not daring to look up as she leaned herself into his embrace. "Your runaway client has stopped running and is here to stay. Even if you decide to pass by like that, I will wait until you turn around. If you don't, that's fine too. I will still wait even if it means waiting for you for a lifetime."

She had thought she was too late in her confession when he went silent, until he spoke.

"You said it, we are bros for life. If you want to be a runaway client I will run with you. If you cannot run any further I will carry you. You said I saved you, but in reality it was you who saved me from that pit of loneliness after my fallout with Laxus. You… You filled up that void of a memory I had lost and could never remember, the memory of what a family is really like. You gave me the warmth that Fairy Tail could not give by sharing your family with me. You saved me, Mira."

She slowly lifted her head up, uncaring if she looks like a mess right now.

"D-Does that mean…"

He smiled at her, tears leaking out from his eyes as well even when he was smiling down at her.

"This passing mage is telling the selfish girl that in front of him, she will always have the right to make unreasonable demands from him. This passing mage is asking this selfish girl if she wants him to run away with her and see if they can grow old together. This passing mage is asking this selfish girl for forgiveness because he's been so dense and stupid to the point that the girl had to confess to him first because he could not face his own feelings despite him knowing deep down that he really likes her. This passing mage wants this selfish girl to know that she is in fact, never selfish. Her kindness and big heart is what makes her so attractive in his eyes. This passing mage is asking this selfish girl to forgive him for being a coward. This passing mage had decided to stop running away from her and is here to stay with her as well, he had accepted the selfish girl's job request and is asking this selfish girl if she minds tolerating this stupid passing mage for the rest of her life."

She felt her jaws drop before slowly, but surely, feeling her face breaking out into a smile.

"This selfish girl is warning this passing mage that she will continue to be selfish and ask for the most unreasonable of demands like she always does. But she wants him to know that she will always have his best interests in mind and she will always love him. She wants him to know that she will sweep him up at her own tempo like a fiery tornado and he better prepares himself for the adventure of a lifetime. This selfish girl wants him to always think about her and only her because she is selfish like that and her jealousy is a mighty thing to behold. If he accepts, this selfish girl now wants the passing mage to run away with her right now and seal the deal with a kiss and then treat her to the biggest buffet ever because she is starving and has not yet eaten breakfast, because she had to catch this passing mage before he ran away from the selfish girl and become someone else's runaway client."

His answer was to immediately pressed his lips to hers and she savoured the moment. She is sure she is sporting a silly grin but she could not care right now.

She is just so happy.

"We are both idiots, aren't we?" She laughed out loud, the happiest she had ever been, the moment their first kiss ended.

"What's more important is the buffet. Skipping breakfast is not good for your health, Mira. We need to go get you something to eat."

"And whose fault was it?" She pounded her fist against his chest in mock anger.

"This passing mage's fault." He sighed and she laughed. She felt herself floating as he brought her into the sky with him using his magic, almost like how he took her flying when they first met.

"Remember when I first took you flying when we first met in the woods? You were screaming non-stop and you were still hugging me and screaming out loud even after we landed."

"Laugh all you want, I don't care about that right now. This selfish girl really needs her food before she eats the passing mage in her hunger."

"Eat all you want today, my treat for making the selfish girl starve."

"It's always been your treat." She grumbled. "When is it my treat?"

"You cook for me almost everyday."

"Point." She conceded before leaning her weight against his and looked up at him. "How do I look today?"

"This passing mage wants the selfish girl to know that he is complimenting her on her new look. Yes, he noticed that she definitely washed her hair this time because it doesn't smell as bad. Yes, he noticed that she definitely sprayed perfume because she smells really nice and she obviously took extra care on what type of perfume it was because his sensitive nose didn't sneeze. Yes, he noticed that she actually puts on lipstick this time. Yes, he is definitely thinking of her and only her all the time and especially right now so please don't be jealous. Did this passing mage check all the boxes?"

"Passable." She looked at him as her hand gently touched his face. "The selfish girl is very satisfied with the passing mage's compliment of her."

"This passing mage is also warning this selfish girl that he sensed some curious busybodies from their guild who are running a bet on when the two of them are getting together about to converge onto their location. He is asking her if she wants to run away with him together and into the future before they arrive and start to annoy us?"

"Yes please. This selfish girl had enough of their teasing for today and she wants him to carry her away to her buffet right now!"

She didn't really remember how good the buffet was, but she did remember the taste of their first kiss.

It's sweet.

* * *

In the blink of an eye, the selfish girl is now a mother. The passing mage is also now a father.

As per her selfish demand for him to hurry up and put the ring on her finger, he proposed to her even if he forgot the entirety of the admittingly impressive speech he had written out and prepared when he was planning to propose to her. The actual date of the proposal he initially planned was **_supposed_** to be on Christmas like she suspected it to be, but it turned out that it didn't go as well as how he expected it to be, all because he decided to push forward the date of the proposal by _nine_ days at the very last second because the moment felt right after the big battle at Tenrou and then he got too nervous to remember what he memorised during the actual proposal and he just _winged it_.

Really? Winged it? The one and only proposal that he will do for her only once in his life and he _winged it?_

Compared to her confession at Lake Scilioria, his confession is a lot duller and not as fancy. But, the sincerity really moved her and she said yes anyway. She would still have said yes anyway no matter what. He still made the selfish girl a very happy girl that day on December 16, Year X784.

Even if the actual proposal he did wasn't a total success, she had kept the written form of the supposed real proposal speech that he had written and it is still with her today. She still took it out to read in private from time to time, not like she would ever admit that to him.

They held their marriage at Lake Scilioria where they first confessed their feelings to each other. It was beautiful. They bought their first house together and built themselves a home, not far from where her own home that she built with her siblings in the early part of her life so that they can all visit each other frequently, be it for meals or anything. They are all family and her family had only just grown bigger since then.

She doesn't want to just build a home with him, she wants to build a family with him. They had their first child not long after they got married, another selfish demand on her part. She had been a little pushy in wanting a child because she _wants_ to build a family with him. It has been her dream ever since they got together, to build a family with him because she's so hopelessly in love with him.

They have a little girl. She has her father's black hair and her mother's blue eyes. Most of her appearance is mostly her mother's but that intellect is definitely her father's. She's got the entire guild wrapped around her little finger and nobody can say no to her. Not even the recently appointed Fourth Guild Master of Fairy Tail is spared. In fact, he is the one often at the mercy of their daughter because he is their daughter's godfather and he spoils her rotten behind their backs.

Like how she is going to be the death of her husband, this little girl is going to be the death of her. She runs even faster than her runaway mother can, always disappearing the moment the mother took her eyes off the girl. Their little girl is really too smart for her age. She blames her husband for that. He really is too good a teacher and their little girl inherited his smarts to a frightening degree.

Mirajane Tyrell let out a blissful sigh, watching her daughter sleep peacefully as she took her afternoon nap. Her hand is lazily supporting her chin and that beautiful ebony black ring worn on her ring finger. Their child really is beautiful, inheriting the best of both their qualities.

She felt him enter their daughter's room and his arms gently wrapping around her waist.

"Home sweet home. Just got back?" She asked quietly, not wanting to wake their daughter up. There is hardly any peace in the house if their little demon is awake.

"Uh huh." He nodded. "Missed my two demons back home so I rushed back."

"How about we make it three demons?" She whispered into his ear in a manner that she knows he loves. "If we are fast enough, we will have another little demon nine months later, give or take. Mirel needs a little brother or sister so that she can stop terrorising us."

"This passing mage says yes to everything and he is about to carry you and run away into the master bedroom right now. The selfish girl is not allowed to retract her words."

She giggled and gave him a peck on the lips before inching closer to whisper into his ear.

"The selfish girl wants the passing mage to bring her into the master bedroom right now!"

He inched closer to her to whisper back into her ear.

"Yes ma'am!"

* * *

 **AN: I decided to post this early because I cannot concentrate on doing my final paper while this is sitting here on my com. I REALLY should be doing my final paper instead of writing chapters.**

 **Very early on when I was writing TAOFT, I had decided to purposely not write in detail about the early part of El's life with Fairy Tail because I wanted to do a flashback chapter like this at an important point in the fic. I had also long since decided to do it right after the Tenrou arc because it will mark an important turning point in the fic. It was why I did not explore in detail how his relationship with Mira initially developed because I want to keep it for this chapter, I wanted to keep you guys guessing. When I first started writing TAOFT it really was just an attempt on my part to see if I have it in me to write a story with romance. After looking at this chapter, I think I really nailed it.**

 **I knew this chapter would be long, but I only expected it to be like 8k words to 10k words kind of long. Maybe 12k if I'm pushing it. And then as I wrote it got longer, and longer, and longer and I was like FUCK this is going to turn out into a short story within a long story. I wrote for an entire day from morning to night using my laptop and then from night to five am in the morning using my phone because I wanted to lie down on my bed but don't want to stop writing. I had wanted to stop halfway to take a break many times but I was in the 'zone' and I knew that if I stopped writing I can never pick it up where I left it off because the mood will definitely be very different. I know that if I took a break it would be months again before I could write anything like this because such rare strokes of inspiration are rare to come by when you are writing. So, I decided to screw my sleeping schedule again and just press on.**

 **This is not counting the hours I spent reading this chapter over and over again to edit it over and over again. Holy shit, this is really killing me.**

 **And fuck if I'm not fucking tired by the time this chapter was done but fuck do I love this chapter (or short story, depending on how you want to see it because this chapter definitely qualifies as a short story).**

 **Hence, the birth of this 26k words monster of a chapter. Freaking 59 pages long on google docs and 60 if you include the AN. Fuck, this is a fucking new record for me. This entire chapter can be a short story on its own. It's even longer than my Demon Slayer short story fic by about 7k words and that took an entire three chapters. But the lack of sleep I suffered for this chapter is so worth it because the part near the end of the chapter where Mira wants El to stay actually moved me nearly to the point of tears for some reason, and the last time I felt moved by my own work was when I was writing chapter 18 of WOTI and that was so long ago. I like this chapter so much that I felt that it can be a short story on its own and a part of me is yelling at myself on why this chapter couldn't be the real TAOFT so that I do not need to continue writing such a long story and just start and end it like this in 26k words instead of the behemoth it had become. Writing it was fun yet a very difficult thing to do. I was really, really, tempted to just end TAOFT here because of how fitting it felt.**

 **But I know you guys like the long story version and see it to the canonical end, so, well, I will try to finish it as best as I can. The things I do for you guys, I swear.**

 **I tried to include as many details as possible found in the early chapters and also tried to reference the events that happened throughout the story of TAOFT in here, especially when it comes to Mira and El interactions. No prizes if you can spot them because I'm piss poor but who knows, it may be fun for you to try and pick them out in this 26k word monster. I had wanted to separate this 'chapter' into a few different chapters so that it is shorter and maybe easier to read but I felt that it would ruin the mood of what I was writing, so I kept it as it is and decided to post it as a single chapter.**

 **As always, RIP to my sleep schedule and I hope you enjoy the chapter.**

 **I am slowly becoming Elden. I need my sleep.**

 **On a side note, just curious, how long did you guys take to finish reading this chapter from start to end?**


	27. Chapter 27- Sidewalk: Shield & Spirit

She had a sister. Her name was Sorano. Her onee-chan always protected her from her mean and abusive parents. She always protects her.

She had protected her from those evil men that took everything away from her. Now, she has nobody.

Without her onee-chan, she is just a nobody with the name of Yukino Agria. She had lost everything. Her village, her home, her family, her onee-chan. The only thing she had left was her name and that golden key her onee-chan gave her in secret before everything turned to dust. The key her onee-chan says will call upon a guardian spirit to save her in her darkest time.

She doesn't know what she needs to do to call upon that guardian spirit. She kept praying to the key in hopes that the spirit would hear her. The spirit never appeared.

She travelled from town to town clutching that golden key in her hands, her faith never wavering in her sister's words that a guardian spirit will save her in her darkest time. She kept praying to the key. Even when people casted her out because she is a street rat, when they beat her for the fun of it, when they tried to take the key from her, when they took away her shoes just to see her feet get cut by the cobbled road as she walked along it.

She never lost her faith because she knows her onee-chan always protects her even if she is no longer around anymore. Her onee-chan is gone, but the key she gave her is still with her. She prays to the key, hoping that the guardian spirit will appear and make all her troubles go away like a magical fairy that she often hears in fairy tales.

The spirit still never appears but she never lost faith, because her onee-chan told her that the key can call upon a guardian spirit.

It was when she really could not walk any longer, when she didn't even know where she was, lost in the sea of trees, that she sat down by the base of a large tree and started to cry. She curled herself up as she hugged her knees close to her chest, burying her head and bawled her eyes out, wishing her onee-chan was still here with her.

She tried, she really tried to have faith but the guardian spirit never appeared.

Then, like a fairy tale, her guardian spirit really appeared in her darkest time.

"Hello, can I help you?"

She looked up to see a man. She didn't know who he was. She's scared that he really might be like the mean evil men that took everything from her. She tried to move back, only to find her back pressed to the tree and she held onto the key tighter than before. Her heart kept praying to the key over and over again for her guardian spirit to save her because she really could not run anymore. She no longer has the strength.

The man slowly squatted down to meet her at eye level. It doesn't seem like he is a bad guy, but she isn't sure. She had seen people that had looked more kind than him but are meaner than the stray dogs on the streets.

"I don't mean any harm, I swear it. I am a member of the mage guild, Fairy Tail. See?"

He showed her his guild mark, the same mark that she will one day receive and wear with pride as well.

"I am not a thug, a bandit, or a dark mage. I am not a bad guy. Is there anything I can help you with?"

She felt so relieved and before she knew it they were talking.

"My name is Elden Tyrell. El-den Ty-rell. What's your name?"

He offered his name and all the water from his water flask that she needed to quench her thirst. Water never tasted so kind.

She told him her name as well.

"My name is Yukino Agria."

He looked a little surprised for some reason but she didn't think too much about it. What matters was that he saved her by extending a hand towards her with that kind smile on his face.

It's a smile that she will never forget. She will never forget that smile and the hand that had pulled her out from her misery. It was because of the hand that he extended to her that she became who she is today. It was because of him that she is part of a family once more and she will protect this new family to her dying breath.

It all started when he asked her this.

"Hello, Yukino. Would you like to join Fairy Tail?"

It was then she realised.

Her guardian spirit really appeared before her in her darkest time.

Her onee-chan was right after all.

* * *

She should have realised earlier why she couldn't walk any further. She was sick. She was running a very high fever. She had always been sickly and it was always her onee-chan who nursed her back to health, not their abusive parents. She had collapsed not long after he picked her out of the woods. She faintly remembered him calling her name worriedly and him carrying her on his back as he ran faster than the wind.

She woke up in a place she doesn't know. She would later find out that it was a nearby inn. Elden, her saviour, her guardian spirit, had called a doctor over to heal her. The doctor said that the fever she had might have developed into something really dangerous if he didn't get her medical aid in time.

He tried his best to nurse her back to health but even the doctor he found said that her condition was too severe for him to guarantee that her fever will not return. She's not out of the danger yet. They managed to get the fever under control for now but the fever may come back at full blast at any time. If it did come back, then this time it would be fatal.

After hearing that, Elden told her that he is bringing her back to his home which will also be her new home. That home is Fairy Tail. He told her of wonderful people each possessing a different kind of powerful magic and of a skilled healer who would definitely heal her back to normal despite her grumpy face so there's no need to worry. He promised her with a smile on his face that she will be okay.

He told her that she has magic and that the key her onee-chan left her can definitely call upon a powerful guardian spirit. He told her that her onee-chan was really protecting her all this time. He told her that her onee-chan was not lying when she gave her the key. He told her this kind of magic is called Celestial Spirit Magic, one of the rarest types of magic you can ever find, and that he will find a way for her to learn it.

"Don't worry. I won't let anyone hurt you and I will find a way to help you call upon your guardian spirit. It's a promise of a lifetime."

"Promise of a lifetime?"

"Promise of a lifetime."

Back then, she doesn't care if she can use magic or not to call upon a guardian spirit. All she knew was that _he_ was her guardian spirit, the guardian spirit that gave her his promise of a lifetime. That promise that she will one day give to another like how he had given her his.

She's still feeling very weak. Her fever had subsided for the moment but it was still there. She's still feeling so afraid that all of this is just a dream and that when she wakes up she will be alone again. She knows she's being childish and clingy but she cannot help it. She kept clinging on to him and had trouble letting him go and she doesn't want him anywhere out of her sight because he is her guardian spirit.

He didn't get mad at her childish behaviour. He understands. He tried his best to indulge her childish behaviour but also made her understand that there are times that she has to be strong on her own for a short while until he returns. He asked her if she can do that for him, she told him that she will try.

Before they made the journey to Fairy Tail, he quickly bought her a few sets of new clothes to change into and get her out of the tattered bloodied rags she had been wearing since the day her onee-chan died. She felt so refreshed after finally being able to wash herself clean. The clothes he picked for her tells her a lot about his lack of fashion sense but she didn't care. He is her guardian spirit and that is all that matters.

It's really like a fairy tale come true.

Once he deems her to have recovered enough to be able to make the long journey back with him to her new home, he lets her experience what it means to be able to fly like a fairy. His magic is fascinating. She smiled for the first time when he flew her across the skies, even if she only smiled for a short while because she found herself afraid of heights after the initial exhilaration was over.

He distracted her from her fear of heights by telling her about the people in Fairy Tail. About the guild master Makarov, about Laxus and the Thunder God Tribe, about Mirajane and her siblings. He even told her that the Strauss siblings have the same white hair as her. It's almost in the same shade of white. He told her that she would love them.

The more she heard him talk about her new home, the more she was starting to get curious about the Fairy Tail he talked about, the guild that puts a smile on his face whenever he mentions them. The people who will be her family even if they are not related by blood. The people who will be her nakama. All of that was such a foreign concept to her when she heard it the first time.

She could tell that using his magic to fly non-stop for days puts an obvious strain on him because of how tired he is starting to look. Still, he refuses to stop because he wants the best healer he knows to take a look at her so that they can be absolutely sure that her fever will go down. He wants her to be in perfect health.

She doesn't know, doesn't understand why he is showing such kindness to her, so she asked. He merely looked at her with a gentle gaze and told her that he was once like her. Like her, he had once lost everything and had nothing. It was because somebody extended a helping hand in his time of need that he is who he is today. Like how Master Makarov extended his hand to Elden and how Elden extended his hand to her, he told her that he is sure that one day she will extend her hand to somebody else who needs her help.

When she asked Elden why he and Master Makarov extended their hands in the first place when they didn't need to, he told her it is because they are Fairy Tail.

Because they are family.

* * *

She had heard a lot about Fairy Tail from Elden in their super speed flight back to Magnolia, but she cannot help but still be nervous and scared. The guild doors are just so big and imposing. She is starting to be able to sense what magic really feels like and it was not a comfortable process. The weird tingly feeling that Elden tells her is her magical sense felt so overloaded from the sheer magic she can feel in this area the moment they touched down. It scares her. The pressure is so suffocating.

She clung onto his pants for dear life and hid herself behind him because the feeling of his magic next to her is the only thing that can calm her down. She is on the point of tears as her anxiety sets in. She doesn't want Elden to go anywhere away from her and so she clung on to him like he is the only thing that matters in this world.

He didn't get mad at her for that. In fact, he told her that the Strauss siblings that he kept telling her about are in the guild today because he sensed their presence in the guild hall. He told her that they are very nice people and she should look forward to meeting them.

What greeted her when Elden pushed the guild doors open was an extremely fierce shouting match and she froze up in fear at the sheer amount of magic pressure she felt from the two people who were arguing and about to start a fight. Elden doesn't even seem to notice the dense magical pressure she felt when he called out to a certain person.

"Mira!"

 **"WHAT?!"**

The burst of magic that exploded from Mira made her freeze in fear as her worst memories, the memories from that day when her onee-chan was forcefully separated from her resurfaced. The sight of her onee-chan's body falling onto the ground lifelessly when she was struck by a magical attack came back to her in perfect clarity.

"Ah… Ah…"

She knows her anxiety attack is starting to set in as she gasped for air. She tries to stop it but she is quickly failing. Her dreadful memories from that day just kept coming back in full force and she could not stop it.

"Hey hey, relax. She's alright. You just caught her in a bad mood, that's all. Mira's not scary at all."

The sensation of his kind hand patting her head to try and calm her down worked for a moment. The feeling of his magic brushing against her skin soothed her slightly.

"Yeah, that female gorilla's not scary at all." A certain redhead commented as she gestured for her to come in from where she is standing on the second floor. "Come on in."

"SHUT UP TIN-CAN!"

Another explosion of magical energy against her senses was too much for her to bear. Her senses got overloaded. She cannot take it anymore.

So, she broke down and cried, and cried, and cried.

It's like crying is the only thing she knows.

* * *

When Elden finally got her to calm down and figured out that her newly emerged hyperactive magical sense was making her go stir crazy, he had immediately shouted at the two female mages to get a grip on their magic and not throw it about so carelessly. Everybody in the vicinity who heard him did just that immediately. The magical pressure suddenly vanishing gives her a sense of relief.

Her eyes wandered to those white hair, almost mistaking its owner to be her sister. No, the eyes are different. Her onee-chan does not have blue eyes. Her sister's eyes are brown like hers.

Still, they really reminded her of her onee-chan, especially the warm and friendly Lisanna because of the short hair she sported. The same hairstyle as her onee-chan.

"Yukino, eh? That's a nice name!"

She still curled up in fear when Mirajane tried to introduce herself to her and Yukino hid herself behind Lisanna because Lisanna really reminded her of her onee-chan. She can still remember the explosion of Mira's magical pressure just now. It made her feel undiluted fear as though she was relieving her memories from back then.

The feeling of her magic is so scary. Almost like a demon from her worst nightmares.

"My name is Mirajane. Mi-ra-jane."

Mirajane seemed undeterred in trying to befriend her although she is making a visible effort to respect her personal space. The way she introduced herself is also the exact same way Elden introduced himself to her when they first met.

 _"My name is Elden Tyrell. El-den Ty-rell. What's your name?"_

Yeah, it was the exact same way.

The tension was broken when her stomach let out an embarrassing growl.

"Did you even eat anything?" Mirajane questioned with a frown. Yukino nodded meekly.

"Elden gave me a lot to eat! I… I… just don't want to trouble E-Elden any further… So I said nothing when I got hungry again..."

Those were her heartfelt thoughts. She was scared that if she troubled Elden too much he would get annoyed or angry at her and leave her all alone like how she was before he found her. She doesn't want to feel that way, not anymore. Not after she finally felt the warmth she hadn't felt after everything was taken away from her.

She wants to stay. Not just with Elden, but also with Fairy Tail even if her first impression of this place isn't all that good. She's still afraid of the huge amount of magic that they throw around carelessly, but magic doesn't lie. At least that was what Elden told her. What she felt from the magic the Fairy Tail members are leaking have not a single shred of hostility at all.

Not a single bit. All she can sense are kindness and protectiveness.

She wants to stay here, in the place that her guardian spirit had said will be her new home. She wants a home.

She wants to try staying in Fairy Tail.

She was brought out of her thoughts when Mirajane patted her on the head.

"Hey, it's good. I'll let you in on a secret! I'm actually a great cook! Wanna see?"

Yukino blinked at Mirajane's words. Mirajane certainly doesn't _look_ like she could cook.

"Really! Elden comes over to our place to eat all the time because of my cooking skills!"

That was all that was needed to convince Yukino that Mirajane must be a great cook.

* * *

"YOU HEAR THAT BITCHES?! FROM HERE ONWARDS YUKINO IS PART OF THE STRAUSS SIBLINGS! GET IT IN YOUR DUMB SKULLS SHITHEADS!"

Mirajane is loud, crass, brash, a little violent, but her kindness really reminds her of Elden. Her brand of kindness is a little bit of an acquired taste and is peppered with vulgarities, but it is kindness nonetheless.

She cannot believe it. She really could not believe it. Fairy Tail is really going to be her new home. She is now a member of Fairy Tail and she now has siblings. She now has a family.

What she didn't expect is for her to not only get adopted by Elden as his little sister, but also by the Strauss siblings as well. Elden and Mira are now her joint legal guardians until she can take care of herself. What she didn't expect is that she will be living with the Strauss siblings. They even cleared out a spare room for her in their house. It is now her bedroom. She now has a bedroom of her own.

It all feels so surreal. She had nothing, now she has everything.

She felt a little anxious when she learnt that she wouldn't be living with Elden, but he assured her that he visits Mira's house everyday for dinner so they would still see each other frequently. That's not counting the time that they will see each other in the guild almost everyday, so there's not much of a difference whether she lives with him or Mira. The only reason why she lives at Mira's place is because Elden's apartment is a little too small for her to live in comfort. The Strauss siblings all attested to that because they once temporarily stayed at Elden's place when they first arrived in Fairy Tail.

She cannot fall asleep during her first night at her new home, in her own bedroom that Elden and the Strauss siblings had taken so much time and care to furnish and decorate for her to cheer her up. She doesn't know how they knew that she could not fall asleep but in the end, her self-proclaimed new siblings with the same shade of white hair as her all fell asleep with her in Elfman's room because his bed is the biggest and could fit all of them if they squeeze a little. Their presence soothes her and it was what finally allowed her to sleep soundlessly till the next morning.

She lost her onee-chan but she gained another four siblings. Two older brothers and two older sisters.

She now has four guardian spirits. Her prayers had been answered after all.

* * *

She soon grew to love the guild. Her fear for the guild had vanished upon seeing how the members all wear their hearts on their sleeves and how genuinely happy they are in welcoming her into their big family. Like her, there are many members in the guild whose pasts are not pretty even if she doesn't know the details. Still, they picked themselves up and moved on. Their courage inspired her to do the same. If her nakamas could do it so could she, because she is now Yukino Agria of Fairy Tail.

Under Elden's encouragement, she soon learnt everybody's names and made friends with everybody else. Even the Thunder God Tribe were welcoming seeing as how they didn't immediately shoo her away when she first approached them unlike what the other guild members warned her about them. She knew Elden had a fallout with them, more specifically with Laxus, but it doesn't really seem that they really hated each other or anything. It's more like they had a communication breakdown that they both don't know how to repair.

When she is back to perfect health under Porlyusica's watchful eye, Elden and her new siblings start to give her lessons like helping her learn how to read and write together with some simple math. Whatever she is interested in learning they try to teach her as best as they can, especially when it comes to understanding magic.

"It's Mira-nee. Say it! Mi-ra-nee!"

Is it really alright to call her _Mira-nee?_ She's not their sibling by blood. Even if she really wants to, she still doesn't dare to call them their siblings because what did she do to merit such kind treatment?

The look on her face must have been obvious because Mirajane's expression got a little downcast for a short moment before she quickly covered it up by forcing a smile. She doesn't want to see Mirajane sad, so her mouth blurted it out before she could think through it.

"M-Mira-nee!"

She saw how Mirajane's face brightened up with joy immediately as the older girl squealed, lifted her up, and swung her around happily in circles while laughing happily the whole time. Does calling her Mira-nee really make her this happy? Does being her sister really make her so happy? Why?

"My turn! My turn! Lisanna-nee! Li-san-na-nee!"

"Lisanna-nee." She blurted out next and when Elfman was eagerly pointing a finger at himself and waiting for her to say it, she spoke. "E-Elf-niichan."

"WOOHOO!"

Her three new siblings cheered and engulfed her in a big hug, nearly suffocating her in the process.

"Hey! El's buying the groceries before coming over for dinner later. You should surprise him! Call him El-niichan!"

"I… I can call him… _El-niichan?_ "

She really wasn't sure if that was a good idea. What if he doesn't like it and leaves her because of that? She doesn't want that to happen. She doesn't want Elden to leave her. He's her guardian spirit.

"Of course you can! He will definitely be very happy if he can hear you call him that! Like _super_ happy! Right, Elfman, Lisanna?"

"Yeah, try it!"

"And we have a special rule for family in this house!" Mira-nee pressed on eagerly. "Whenever someone returns home you greet them with _Home sweet home!_ Or Welcome Back will do but we all prefer Home sweet home! So when El gets back later you greet him with _Home sweet home El-niichan!_ Got it?"

Thus, when Elden walked through the door sometime later with a big bag of groceries in hand, she greeted him with "Home sweet home El-niichan".

The look on his face was one of utter joy.

It was at that moment that she really considered herself as their sibling, a part of their family.

She now has family again. This time, a loving one.

 _Home sweet home._

* * *

She is doing well in her lessons because she doesn't want to disappoint her siblings. Her magical reserves are large enough for her to start learning the practical aspects of magic. Her siblings had flipped the entire guild archives upside down to find a way to let her learn how to properly invoke Celestial Spirit magic because it is not a very common brand of magic you see among mages. They still found what she needed and she finally learnt how to summon the guardian spirit her onee-chan had told her will protect her in her darkest times.

Ophiuchus.

The Gate of the Snake Charmer. The Thirteenth Gate. Ophiuchus is huge and very powerful. It is an exceptionally powerful spirit that rivals even the Zodiac Spirits. She doesn't know how Sorano found Ophiuchus' key, but she is glad that she has something to remember her by.

Even if her onee-chan is no longer around, she is still protecting her. She gave her a guardian spirit and it will protect her forever. That's how big the love her onee-chan has for her. It's a kind of love that will last for eternity, like the stars in the sky.

Because of her young age and small magical reserves, she could not summon Ophiuchus for very long. She quickly made a contract with the spirit before it was forced to disappear back to the Celestial Spirit World. After the contract was finalised, Ophiuchus' snakish fork-like tongue gave her a huge lick that slobbered her all over in its saliva before it poofed back into the Celestial Spirit World.

 _What? Was that normal?_

Her siblings, however, were merciless as they openly laughed at her plight. She is entirely drenched in snake saliva and she doesn't know what to do and how she should react.

She really has to get Ophiuchus to stop doing that the next time they meet.

* * *

The first Zodiac Key she got was Loke's.

Technically, his real name is Leo, the Gate of the Lion, but he prefers if people call him Loke. His magic is Regulus, giving him the capability to fight using the element of light. Leo is said to be the strongest Zodiac spirit in terms of combat ability and this key is now hers. She now has another guardian spirit.

Her siblings had stumbled onto this key on one of their missions and had gotten it for her. She could still remember how overjoyed she was upon receiving that unexpected present. Her siblings found Pisces and Libra for her much later, but the fact is that they are willing to go on the hardest of missions for the sake of finding her the rare Golden Zodiac Keys, because she is their little sister.

She really doesn't know what she had done to deserve such wonderful siblings.

She had truly put down her past soon enough as she embraced the future with her new family. She is now smiling all the time. Her times with her siblings are filled with laughter, jokes, teasing, and many other happy memories that she wouldn't trade for anything in the world.

She was a little young when she first came to Fairy Tail, but by the time she had lived with them for about two years and had gotten really familiar with them, to the extent that she won't hesitate to help Mira-nee to fill the bucket full with cold water and dump it on her El-niichan if he overslept again, she started to have her own suspicions.

She decided to confirm it with her Lisanna-nee one fine night. She found Lisanna in her bedroom and hopped onto her bed to lie beside her.

"Yes, Yukino?"

"You know, I've been thinking for a while and… Is Mira-nee and El-niichan… You know… in _that_ kind of relationship?"

Lisanna's jaws dropped in surprise before it closed up and a mischievous look sported her face.

"So even _you_ picked it up. About time. I kept thinking that you were too young to realise."

"So it's real?!" She asked excitedly. She was just guessing blindly! Her Mira-nee and El-niichan really are…?

"Problem is, the _whole guild_ knows _except_ for the two of them." Lisanna sighed dramatically. "I swear Mira-nee dug her own grave when she declared El her 'bro for life'. It's like she bro-zoned him. Bad move on her part."

"But they don't act like _bros_."

" _Exactly_." Lisanna emphasised. "We really need to give them a little push. El is hopeless in any form of social activity so we can only hope that Mira-nee can pick up the slack."

Thus started the merciless onslaught of teasing she and Lisanna did to Mira-nee and El-niichan until they _finally_ got together.

The things she does for her El-niichan.

* * *

"The both of you should get a room."

Don't get her wrong, she's happy that her Mira-nee and her El-niichan are finally a couple. She's happy to see them being more and more hopelessly in love with each other with every passing day but certain things _should_ have a limit.

It was a mistake that day when she opened the door and walked into her Mira-nee's room to find her El-niichan. The sight of the couple making out with a passionate kiss naked as the day they were born was a scene that was unfortunately burned into her memory, ** _for eternity_**. To be fair, that was her fault for not knocking before entering but she had learnt quickly to always knock on doors before entering after that incident. But sometimes it's like Mira-nee and El-niichan don't really care if they start to get lovey-dovey even with her, Elf-niichan, and Lisanna-nee watching.

She had learnt too many sexual innuendos and references that any children her age shouldn't have any business knowing about yet because of her Mira-nee flirting with her El-niichan _right in front of her_ all the time. It doesn't help that her El-niichan had been officially corrupted by Mira-nee ever since they got into a relationship. It doesn't help that her traitorous brain keep making her imagine or see images of her two oldest siblings in positions that she really doesn't want to see or imagine them in. It's all Mira-nee's fault now that whenever she hears or sees something innocent her brain would somehow link it to some sexual innuendo.

It helps that after she voiced her complaints Mira-nee and El-niichan would sometimes leave for El-niichan's apartment so that they can do… whatever they want to do. _Without her knowing about it_. That's the important part. The thing that didn't help was that she still wasn't spared from hearing her El-niichan's corny love jokes he told Mira-nee every now and then that is absolutely cringy but Mira-nee loves to hear them like how El-niichan loves to hear Mira-nee sing for him while playing the guitar.

"How did you and El-niichan first meet anyway?"

She still remembered when she first asked her Mira-nee this question. She has a rough idea of how they really met thanks to the other members of the guild but they don't know the details. Funnily enough, she only asked them this question after she had lived with them for years. She didn't know why she didn't ask them earlier. It just never crossed her mind because she sees them almost everyday.

She was lying on the big couch in the living room with her siblings in a tangle of limbs. Her older siblings looked at each other with a knowing smile as if it is a shared secret. Mira-nee was helping to patch up El-niichan's jacket, Lisanna-nee and El-niichan were reading, Elf-niichan was about to doze off until she asked this question.

"Let's just say the passing mage found his runaway client." Her El-niichan replied before sending her Mira-nee a wink, which she returned by blowing a kiss in his direction.

Just the sight of it alone is enough to get her to stop asking.

"URGH! STOP IT! FORGET THAT I ASKED! JUST GO GET A ROOM!"

"You heard Yukino, El! Let's go get ourselves a room and, you know?"

That look on her Mira-nee's face. _Oh God. **Please stop.**_

"Your room?"

"Yup! In the bath or on the bed?"

"MIRA-NEE! EL-NIICHAN! PLEASE! NOT WHILE WE ARE STILL HERE!"

"On second thought, it's kinda _hard_ to do **_that_** without anyone knowing since your room is not soundproofed."

"Oh, but I love _hard_ things!"

 **"MIRA-NEE!"**

She really doesn't know how Elf-niichan and Lisanna-nee managed to develop an immunity to that kind of thing happening everyday in their lives.

* * *

Her El-niichan's 21st birthday is coming up soon. Like every year, he has no idea that his birthday is coming soon. He never remembered his own birthday even when he remembered everyone else's just fine.

She is adamant on making it the best and biggest birthday party ever. Mirajane reminded her that her El-niichan doesn't like attention and the crowd, but Yukino argued that it is his _21st_ birthday. It is _important_.

Mira-nee relented, and thus began the super secret SS Class mission for the Strauss siblings to prepare his upcoming birthday party without him finding out about it. She managed to convince the whole guild to take part in it and they agreed readily.

Of course, she should have guessed that her trouble-prone guildmates would have failed in the most important task of holding El-niichan back until the preparations are finished, but El-niichan always had a talent for sneaking around undetected and his mind is very sharp so she really isn't surprised. What's important is that he had truly enjoyed himself and that alone makes her happy.

He had bought a dark blue rose hairpin and gave it to her as a present some time back. It's pretty. For once, he actually had some sort of fashion sense. Mira-nee applied some Transformation magic to it so that she can easily change the colour to match those of the current attire she is wearing. She loves it. She wore it everytime she went out and it is easily her most treasured possession other than her keys.

Her El-niichan also found her a few more Golden Zodiac Keys some time later, but not in the way that she expected.

It was her onee-chan's keys. Sorano. Her onee-chan by blood that she thought had passed away trying to protect her. She was alive all along and was a core member of an infamous dark guild, the Oracion Seis. Like her, she is a Celestial Spirit mage.

She doesn't know what to think, what to feel. She doesn't know and cannot understand just _what the hell_ is going on.

She cannot even visit or see her onee-chan because of some legal and political mumbo-jumbo that she never understood. All she knows is that she is not allowed to see her at least in the foreseeable future. So, after mulling for a few days and staring at Sorano's keys with a million thoughts swirling in her head, she decided to summon her onee-chan's spirits.

Gemini, Aries, Scorpio.

They knew who she was the moment they saw her. Her onee-chan had told them that she would be giving them to her before she willingly turned herself over to the Magic Council. It was then Yukino remembered how to cry again, with the three spirits that her onee-chan used to possess consoling her.

She ended up giving Scorpio to Lucy when she found out Scorpio and Aquarius are in a romantic relationship. The spirits didn't say anything bad about her onee-chan but it is not hard for her to read in between the lines to know that her onee-chan didn't treat them well. In a way, she wants to help her onee-chan atone for her sins, so she decided that this is the best arrangement that will make Scorpio happy because it was obvious Scorpio wasn't happy while he was contracted with her onee-chan despite him trying to hide that from her. It is her way of helping her onee-chan apologise to her spirits for what she had done to them.

Convincing Lucy to accept Scorpio's Key was another problem, but that's another different story for another day.

Yukino then tried to see if there is a way to help make Aries and Gemini happy in her quest to try and help atone for her onee-chan's sins. Aries and Loke are good friends and Aries really insisted on joining her. Gemini doesn't really have friends in particular with the other Zodiac Spirits but Gemini expressed an interest to form a contract with her. So, they stayed.

She likes Aries and Gemini. Not just because they used to be her sister's spirits, but they are gentle in a way that her other spirits are not. It helps that Gemini are small and are easy to cuddle and Aries' cotton is really really soft and fluffy. Having the two spirits in her arsenal also gave her another significant boost in firepower because of their capabilities.

She may not be able to visit her onee-chan yet, but that does not stop her El-niichan from finding loopholes for her to communicate with her onee-chan, even if it is in the form of a very one-sided method of communication.

"Letters?"

"Just write what you want to tell her and I'll get Jura to pass it to her in secret for you. He's in charge of the Oracion Seis case and he has some pull in the Magic Council. The only downside is that we probably shouldn't get our hopes up in hearing a reply from her because they most likely won't allow anything to go out. Your sister is too high profile a prisoner in their eyes."

And so, that's what she did. She wrote something to tell her onee-chan everyday, it's like writing a diary. It doesn't matter if it is a big event or some mundane thing like complaining how El-niichan and Mira-nee really needs to learn how to get a room and stop polluting her mind, or how her training is progressing smoothly and that she can sustain her spirits in the human world for far longer now. She told her about how she first met Ophiuchus, Loke, Pisces, and Libra. She told her about Fairy Tail, the new home she found after they lost theirs.

She tells her that she really really really really wants to see her once again, in person. She tells her onee-chan that she really wants to see her onee-chan again and tells her that she really misses her and to not worry about her because she is doing fine, because her onee-chan had protected her when she needed it the most and is still protecting her in the form of Ophiuchus, her guardian spirit that protects her when she needs it the most.

She dated all her letters properly and sent them in an envelope at the end of every week. Her El-niichan will make sure that it gets to Jura properly and Jura would give them to her onee-chan. It helps to have connections in high places.

One day, Jura sent a word back from her onee-chan. Her onee-chan wants to tell her that she is doing fine too and that she is also looking forward to seeing her again. They will finally meet when she is done atoning for her sins and her onee-chan will give her the biggest hug in the world.

She cried again. But this time, it is in joy.

She was glad that she had her sister's spirits when the battle at Tenrou came along. It is like her onee-chan is still protecting and helping her. It was when she helped play a crucial war in their guild's battle against Grimoire Heart that she realised just how many guardian spirits she now have by her side. Because of her onee-chan giving Gemini to her, she had helped play an important role in helping her two oldest siblings come back home safe and sound. Home sweet home.

She doesn't know what she will do if she loses them.

* * *

Mira-nee's room is mostly empty now that she built a new home with El-niichan. It is just her, Lisanna-nee, and Elf-niichan in this house now. Maybe Elf-niichan would leave someday too, because he and Evergreen are starting to get suspiciously close to each other. It is the perfect opportunity for her and Lisanna-nee to go into full teasing mode once again.

Even when El-niichan and Mira-nee are now married, they are still a family and they still eat dinner together as long as they are all free to meet. Sometimes it is everyday, sometimes it is once a week. It really depends on their schedule but they are still as close as ever. Things didn't really change that much in this regard.

And then their family had a new addition.

"R-Really?! Really?!"

"Really." Her Mira-nee nodded with a soft and blissful look on her face, her hands subconsciously touching the surface of where her belly would start to show in time. "I'm about two months in."

"Congrats Mira-nee, El-niichan! Does the guild know yet?"

"No, not really." Her El-niichan replied with a laugh. "Wendy and Carla knew because they happened to be there with us at Porlyusica, but that's it. We wanted to let you guys know about the news first before we surprise the guild."

The guild's reactions to the news were equal kinds of hilarious, heart-warming, and scary in the Fairy Tail-esque kind of way because that child will be the first child in his or her generation to join Fairy Tail. Everybody's protective instincts just went into overdrive.

The entire guild hall was baby-proofed, for one. Nobody knows how such a big project was completed without a guild brawl erupting like it usually did. The Thunder God Tribe were like Mira's personal bodyguards that followed her everywhere she goes. Mira became jobless because nobody ever lets Mira into the guild bar during the entire duration of her pregnancy because "You are pregnant, Mira! You shouldn't work!" and then "Cana! Macao! Wakaba! No drinking in front of Mira because the smell of alcohol is too strong for the baby! And yes, Gildarts! You too! What if you set a bad example for the baby?!". There is also a freaking ginormous swear jar at least two stories high now in the centre of the guild hall that remains to this day because "What if the baby heard it?!". Gajeel is the main donor when it comes to the swear jar. Things just got worse when Laxus and Erza were appointed the godfather and godmother of the unborn child by their parents and then the biggest guild brawl that had ever happened in Fairy Tail's history erupted to challenge them for the title. Obviously, nobody could best them and Gildarts was banned from the fight because, well, he's _Gildarts_.

People also somehow forget that _Jellal_ is the baby's uncle as well until he lorded that sacred title over the rest of the guild who were still futilely trying to wrench the title of godfather or godmother away from Laxus and Erza, and then people started to challenge Jellal for the title of the baby's uncle. Not like they succeeded because Jellal is _Jellal_ , but then when _Mystogan_ challenges Jellal for the title of the baby's uncle as well because he is _also technically Jellal_ and that there could only be **_one_** BEST UNCLE JELLAL, everything just got downright confusing and insane and the guild building nearly got demolished from the fight between the two Jellals and nobody could tell which is which and who is who because they not only look the same and talk the same and fight the same and even smelt the same according to the Dragon Slayers in the guild. It doesn't help that Mystogan simply repeated Jellal's magic back at him and they were both wearing the exact same clothes that had the words 'BEST UNCLE' printed on it in big bold pink. She herself nearly thought Mystogan was Jellal if it wasn't for Mystogan's staves marking out which is Edo Jellal. Thankfully the Strauss siblings were somehow spared from the insanity of the brawls because people challenging them for their rights as the baby's aunts and uncles would make Mira-nee mad and she was in one of her mood swings that only El-niichan can safely survive. Yukino was secretly glad for that. She isn't sure if she could survive to see the baby's birth if people started to challenge her for the right to be the baby's aunt.

Mira was not even three months into her pregnancy and yet the unborn baby was already being so scarily protected that even Fiore's Royal Army would have problems trying to get to him or her.

And when the time came to pick the baby's name when it was confirmed that it is going to be a girl, things just got downright crazy.

"IGNEEL! THE BABY MUST BE NAMED IGNEEL!"

"HOW IS IGNEEL A GIRL'S NAME?!"

"T-THEN IGNIS! _IGNIS!_ "

"NO WAY! IT MUST BE _METALICANA!_ "

"G-GRANDEENEY!"

"NO! IT MUST BE UR!"

"NO FUCKING WAY!"

"GAJEEL! SWEAR JAR!"

"FUCK!"

 _"GAJEEL! **STOP** SWEARING! WHAT IF THE BABY HEARD IT?!"_

"OH FU- ARGGH!"

 _Nobody_ allowed El-niichan to pick the name even if he is the father because his naming sense definitely sucks. The whole guild agrees on that, especially the Thunder God Tribe.

"She's going to be a girl! We must pick out the clothes right now!"

"Guys? There's still a few more months-"

"Pink! It must be pink!"

"We need a baby cot too! One fit for a princess!"

"We need to make a list of the boys in town who are around her age and keep an eye on them! She can't date until she's 20!"

Nobody could control the situation. It was an absolute mayhem.

In the end, Mira-nee and El-niichan could not stop the guild from shoving and piling gifts for their unborn baby on their doorstep, but Mira-nee did put her foot down about the baby's name.

The baby's name will be Mirel Tyrell.

The name Mirel is obviously a merger of Mira's and Elden's name. It is simple in its design and it doesn't really have any special meaning behind the name other than the love the parents have for their yet to be born daughter. It is a unique name that is easy to remember and it sounds like those of a girl. It is fitting for this unborn child, the little princess of Fairy Tail that everybody is so protective about.

And then _somebody_ had to ask what if the baby Mira is carrying is a boy and not a girl? What name then? Elmi? Elra? Elja? Elne? Eljane? Elmira?

The entire crazy process of trying to name the baby restarted itself.

* * *

She is an aunt now. An aunt to one Mirel Tyrell.

She could stare at the sleeping newborn baby lying in the baby cot the entire day. She is still staring at her dreamily with a silly smile on her face. Little Mirel had only just arrived into this world yesterday, yet one look at her niece and she knows that she is going to spoil her rotten. El-niichan and Mira-nee could tell her off for that all they want but it's okay. She will be that cool aunt to Mirel.

Mirel has her mother's eyes. The little tufts of hair on her head tells her enough to know that she inherited her father's hair. Yukino cannot help but wonder just what type of magic would Mirel wield? Barrier magic like her father? Or Take Over magic like her mother?

Or maybe she can teach Mirel Celestial Spirit magic! She will help Mirel find her own guardian spirits! That will be so cool!

Sometime during Mira's pregnancy, Alzack got Bisca pregnant and they had a shotgun marriage which considering the type of magic they use, the pun is oddly fitting. Fairy Tail can expect another baby to be on the way and Mirel can expect a future playmate.

Perhaps the love story between El-niichan and Mira-nee was really heart-warming, maybe their love really is contagious, it could be that the way they look at each other made people wonder if they can find someone that would look at them the same way as well and for all she knew their beautiful marriage had moved and encouraged many others in their guild from their generation to take steps to find their own happiness like how Alzack and Bisca did. All she knew was that after El-niichan and Mira-nee's marriage, love is suddenly in the air in Fairy Tail. Gajeel and Levy are also definitely a thing and so is Natsu and Lucy and Juvia and Gray and Erza and Jellal and-

The list will only grow longer. Let's just say that Mirel's arrival is just heralding the start of a baby boom in Fairy Tail.

"Home sweet home, Mirel. Your Aunt Yukino will protect you. It's a promise of a lifetime."

Yukino whispered her promise to the sleeping baby Mirel. Like how her onee-chan had protected her from those evil men, like how El-niichan had protected her when he first found and saved her, like how Mira-nee, Elf-niichan, and Lisanna-nee had protected her and guide her out from the darkness, she will do the same for Mirel too.

Just like how her El-niichan gave her his promise of a lifetime to protect her, she now gives her promise of a lifetime to Mirel. Like how El-niichan is her guardian spirit, she will be Mirel's guardian spirit.

Because she is family, because they are family.

 _Home sweet home._

* * *

 **AN: This marks the end of the Sidewalk chapters and I am definitely going to take a break for now. To me, Laxus's chapter represents friendship, Mira's is love, and Yukino's is family. They are the people that Elden had met in chronological order. They represent the things that Elden never had until he met them and they are each important to him in their own way. They were what made him grow as a person as he went through each of these experiences in turn. Fairy Tail has a strong bond in canon, a tightly knitted family despite most of them having no blood connections to each other and I want to go deeper as to why that bond is strong. Yukino's story was a very good way to show it using my own spin on things, on what I think Fairy Tail really is like in my own interpretation.**

 **You can say that Yukino's experience with Fairy Tail is what I believe Fairy Tail will be like if they are indeed real.**

 **That said, I really hope you guys enjoy the Sidewalk chapters because I really enjoyed writing them and loved them a lot despite the price being my sleep schedule. They are easily the best chapters that I had ever written, like a short story on their own. I had always loved writing short stories.**

 **Times may be hard, some of our pasts may not be pretty, but may everyone find their home sweet home like how Yukino did in Fairy Tail.**


End file.
